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Society Recollections 
in Paris and Vienna 




FIVE FAMOUS SINGERS 



MADAME MARIE ROZE-MAPLESON MADAME ADELINA PATTI 

MADAME CARVALHO 
MADAME NILSSON MADAME MARIE GALLI 



[Froiitis/iece 



Society Recollections 

IN 

Paris and Vienna 

1879-1904 



By 

An English Officer 



WITH THIRTY-TWO ILLUSTRATIONS 



NEW YORK 

D APPLETON AND COMPANY 

1908 



s 



-as' 



All Rights Resewed 

of 



CONTENTS 



I. Paris— English, French, and American Society i 



II. Paris— The Opera and the Theatres 

III. Paris— The Parisians 

IV. Paris— Grisettes . . . . 
V. Munich— The Death of Ludwig II 

VI. Berchtesgaden and Reichenhall . 

VII. Vienna—The Society 

VIII. Vienna— Sport and Play . 

IX. Vienna — The Balls 

X. Vienna— The Women 

XI. Vienna— The Military 

XII. Vienna— The Aristocracy . . . 

XIII. Vienna— The Imperial Family— Crown Prince 

Rudolph . ... 

XIV. Vienna— Doctors and Lawyers 

XV. Vienna — The Ministry and Corps Diplo- 
matique . . . . 

XVI. Vienna— The Opera and the Ballet 

XVII. Vienna— The Theatres 

XVIII. Vienna— The Minor Theatres 

XIX. Vienna— General Conclusions . ' . 

Index ..... 



36 
57 
72 

89 
123 
IS8 
171 
182 
195 
209 
220 

227 
240 

247 
252 
274 
287 
293 
307 



LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS 

Five Famous Singers— Madame Marie Roze-Mapleson, 
Madame Adelina Patti, Madame Carvalho, 
Madame Nilsson, Madame Galli Mari6 . Frontispiece 

TO FACE PAGE 

Miss Fanny Parnell, Mrs. Thompson— Sisters of the 

LATE Charles Stewart Parnell, m.p. . . . 6 

Miss Campbell Boyd— The Countess of Berkeley . 26 

Two Leaders of Society — Marquise de Pourtales, 

Mrs. Ronalds . . . ... 46 

Miss Eva Bingham . . ... 52 

The Hon. Mrs. Yorke . . ... 68 

Two Grisettes in Paris — Mlle. Ren6e Leclerc, Frau- 

lein Cs^ry Terka . . ... 86 

LuDwiG II OF Bavaria . . . . . 102 

Two Famous French Actresses — Madame Rachel, 

Madame Favart . . . . . 148 

Count Bulow, Fraulein Kletzer, Fraulein Mizzi Ruff, 
Count Metternich, Fraulein Steyer, Count Ester- 
hazy, Countess Esterhazy, Fraulein Loitelsberger 
(taken at the Imperial Palace at Schonbrunn 
after a performance of the " Aristocrats" before 
the Emperor) . . . . . . 166 

Three Celebrated Stage Favourites— Madame Maria 

GiURi, Madame Judic, Fraulein Hansy Jusl . . 194 

Baroness Vecsera, Mlle. Sophie de Kieszkowska . 216 

The late Crown Prince Rudolph, Crown Princess 
Stephanie, Archduke Karl Franz Josef (future 
Emperor of Austria) . . ... 236 

Principal Dancers in the Ballet at the Hofopern- 

Theater in Vienna . . ... 260 

Three Celebrated Vienna Ballet-Dancers — Fraulein 
Schleinzer, Fraulein Gabrielle Klobetz, Frau- 
lein Bertha Linda . . ... 284 

The Author and Fraulein Mizzi Ruff , . . 302 



Society Recollections in Paris 
and Vienna 1879 -1904 

CHAPTER I 

PARIS— ENGLISH, FRENCH, AND AMERICAN SOCIETY 

^11 THILE serving as a lieutenant with my regiment 
towards the end of the seventies, I made up my 
mind to spend my winter leave partly in Paris, and then 
to proceed to Vienna, which latter capital I had never 
seen. My acquaintance with Paris was ever since I 
was a child, and it therefore did not offer me much 
novelty, except to go to the new plays at the different 
theatres, and some very smart balls and parties which 
were given in the Faubourg St. Germain by leading 
French families, and in the Champs Elysees mostly by 
very wealthy Americans. 

I must confess that I was always more amused at the 
houses of the latter. Possibly it was that the suppers 
given by the Americans were so much better, and in- 



Society Recollections 

eluded every luxury one could think of in the way of 
eating and drinking. 

There was always a gorgeous display of toilettes by 
the American ladies, whereas in French society every- 
thing was much more simple, from the suppers with 
lemonade, instead of champagne, to the ladies, who were 
mostly all married ; and there was an absence of the 
lovely young girls who were to be met with in American 
society. I remember at that time a young American 
married couple of the name of Harriman giving a very 
smart ball in their magnificent hotel in the Champs 
Elysees, at which the celebrated band of Waldteufel 
performed. I was introduced by the hostess to a pretty 
young French girl of sixteen, the daughter of a French 
count, whose father and mother were surprised to find 
that it was a ball to which they had brought their young 
daughter, imagining that it was merely a soiree dan- 
sanie to which they had been invited. The daughter, 
who was extremely fair for a French girl, and possessed 
beautiful blue eyes, told me that I must not take her 
(after dancing with her) away from the sight of her 
mother. She told me this in a naive, charming manner, 
though it surprised me not a Httle, as I was accustomed 
to the liberty which American girls enjoy at balls. She 



In Paris and Vienna 1879 -1904 

told me that it was quite unusual for young French girls 
of the nobility to frequent balls at all, except perhaps 
a hal hlanc ; and that she ought not really to have 
been there. 

There was a very nice family of the name of Pringle, 
who gave a dance every week, to which I was always 
invited, as in Paris one invitation was meant for an in- 
vitation to every subsequent dance given throughout the 
winter. The first time I went there, one of the daughters 
of the house asked me whether she could introduce me 
to any one. I at once asked her to take me up to a 
young lady I very much admired, but by mistake she 
introduced me to another, who she told me was the 
belle of Paris, and who was Miss Fanny Parnell, a 
sister of the well-known Irish M.P. Later in the even- 
ing she introduced me to the lady I admired so much. 
Miss Minnie Warren, whose portrait painted by Chaplin 
was considered one of his best pictures, but her father 
would never allow it to be exhibited at the Salon, 
Some time afterwards I fancied I recognized Miss Warren 
in the Champs Elysees walking with a lady. As there 
were several other American families of that name re- 
siding in Paris, I had great difficulty in finding out where 
she lived, and on calling at an hotel in the Boulevard 

3 



Society Recollections 

Haussmann I was shown into a salon, when an old 
gentleman an entire stranger to me entered the room, 
and asked me whom I wanted to see. I told him, and 
he replied that if it should be his daughter I meant 
she would soon come in, so I waited alone in the salon, 
and was greatly relieved to find that it was the same 
young lady. I was a constant guest at their magnificent 
house in the Boulevard Haussmann, frequently going to 
afternoon tea there, when the three daughters enter- 
tained the guests, who were generally only gentlemen. 
Sometimes I met an American girl or two there, but the 
parents always kept away in their own drawing-room, as 
I found out was the fashion among Americans. 

Miss Minnie Warren was, without exception, one of the 
loveliest girls I think I ever saw, possessing delicate 
regular features, a pink and white complexion, hair of a 
fair golden colour, and eyes of a violet blue ; the beauti- 
ful picture of Chaplin which hung in her drawing-room 
hardly rendered justice to her beauty. I heard on my 
return to Paris, after serving some time in India, that 
the family had since returned to Boston, and that she 
had married one of the Vanderbilts. I never met a 
Frenchman in their house, and, like many of the best 
American families, they never invited any Frenchmen 

4 



In Paris and Vienna 1879- 1904 

to visit them. I remember M. Lescuyer d'Attainville, 
the grandson of Prince de Rivoh (Due de Massena), say- 
ing to me at that time that he envied me much, for I 
had the entree to all the best American houses in 
Paris, which he as a Frenchman could never obtain. 

Miss Fanny Parnell was then the most admired of 
all the American girls in Paris. One evening she invited 
the Prussian MiUtary Attache and myself to come with 
her to a ball given in the Champs Elysees by the Misses 
King. We both went, but Miss Parnell quite forgot to 
introduce us to the three sisters, an omission for which 
the eldest sister never forgave her, so Miss Parnell in- 
formed me later. Miss King afterwards married M. 
Waddington, who became French Ambassador at our 
Court of St. James'. 

The salon of Miss Fanny Parnell was very much fre- 
quented of an afternoon at five o'clock, chiefly by gentle- 
men, for not only was she a remarkable beauty, but 
she excelled in esprit and one was never dull in her 
society for one moment. I met the Due de Beaufort- 
Spontin there one day, who told me that often in England 
he was mistaken for the Duke of Beaufort, from the 
similarity of names. He amused us very much by say- 
ing how often he had received proposals of marriage 

5 



Society Recollections 

from the mothers of young girls on behalf of their 
daughters, but he had always declined them. Once, 
however, he had made a mistake in refusing a young 
lady, for happening to travel in a railway carriage with 
a most delightful lady whom he fell quite in love with, 
he asked at the station when she got out who she was, 
and was informed that she was a French countess who 
had lately been married ; and he then discovered that 
she was the young lady whom he had recently refused 
to marry without having seen her. The Due de Beaufort- 
Spontin married many years afterwards the Princess de 
Ligne in Brussels. 

Miss Fanny Parnell lived at that time with her uncle. 
Colonel Stewart, in a magnificent apartment on the 
Champs Elysees, for which he paid a rent of nearly one 
thousand pounds a year. After his death Miss Parnell 
went to America to live with her mother, where she died 
at the early age of twenty-seven of typhus fever. She 
was greatly disappointed in her uncle's will ; and her 
mother died afterwards in great poverty near New York. 
Miss Parnell before leaving Paris incurred the anger of 
the Americans in Paris by writing a skit on American 
society there, which some of them took very much to 
heart. I remember her telling me that she had passed 

6 




^ -; 




In Paris and Vienna 1 879-1904 

one season in London with her cousin Lord Darnley, 
and she was surprised to find how few dresses she re- 
quired in London compared with Paris ; moreover, that 
ladies in town often wore the same ball dress at different 
balls, which could never be done in Paris. She also 
found that English ladies had at that time an utter want 
of taste in dress. Miss Fanny Parnell was always taken 
for an American, she told me, when in town ; but she 
much preferred to be considered Irish, as her father was 
Irish, although her mother was an American. 

At a ball I went to given by Warren Bey, I was in- 
troduced to President Grant of the United States, and 
to Mrs. Grant and their son. The President told me he 
was charmed with his visit to Paris. He did me the 
honour of calling upon me the next day with his son ; 
but as chance would have it I happened to be out, so 
I never had the pleasure of seeing him again, as he was 
merely in Paris for a few days. During that same even- 
ing I was also introduced to Gambetta, with whom I 
conversed for some time. On relating this some years 
later to the Marquise de Faucher, who was staying at 
Bourbon I'Archambault with her two delightful daugh- 
ters, she said that I well deserved to lose the use of my 
right hand, as I had done through an accident, for 

7 



Society Recollections 

having ever shaken hands with such a Repubhcan, 
" Though, after all, you have only imitated what the' 
Prince of Wales had done before you," she added. To 
which I said : " Vous voulez que je sois plus royaliste 
que le roi ! " 

In French society at that time the Marquise de Ville- 
neuve, nee Princesse Jeanne Bonaparte, used to make 
a great display of toilette at certain balls. She was 
remarkable for her beauty, which was more of the 
Oriental style ; she was very dark and had a sallow 
complexion, but beautiful black eyes and long eye- 
lashes. I remember one evening every one crowding 
round the staircase to see her arrive at a ball. On that 
occasion she wore a white dress trimmed with water- 
lilies, with a tremendously long train, and no jewellery 
whatever. She rarely, if ever, danced ; her long train 
scarcely allowed of it. 

Among the English then in Paris was an old lady, 
Mrs. Healey, an aunt of Theobald Viscount Dillon, 
who often used to come to Paris with Lady Dillon 
to see his aunt. I -constantly met them at her 
house, Lord Dillon having served in the same regiment 
that I was in then. One evening Lord Dillon told me 
an anecdote about Lord Amelius Beauclerc, whose son 



In Paris and Vienna 1 879-1904 

was in my regiment and a great friend of mine. Lord 
Amelius had just saved the life of a woman from 
drowning by jumping overboard into a very rough sea, 
and when telUng the story, some one said : "I am sure, 
Beauclerc, she must have been a very pretty woman," 
to which Lord Amehus answered : "I only knew that 
it was a woman, and that was quite enough for me ! " 

Lord Dillon when in the regiment as a subaltern was 
told to call on a line regiment which had lately arrived 
in the garrison ; he was very fatigued at the time from 
a long ride, and though offered lunch, he could only be 
induced to take a glass of sherry and a biscuit. The 
officers of the line regiment looked upon his conduct as 
an insult to themselves, as they thought he considered 
himself too great a swell to lunch with them, and was 
only giving himself airs ; they therefore tried to pro- 
voke him to fight a duel. They soon, however, saw that 
they had a different kind of man to deal with than they 
at first thought was the case. The Marquis de Mont- 
clerc, whose mother was a Jerningham, was another of 
Mrs. Healey's nephews whom I met at dinner there. He 
told the story that while he was in England he ordered 
four turkeys at an hotel for his dinner, and when he re- 
turned at eight o'clock to dine he saw that the table 

9 



Society Recollections 

was laid for half a dozen people. The waiters were sur- 
prised to see him sit down alone, and their astonishment 
was all the greater when, after cutting off the wings of 
the several turkeys, he ate only a small piece from under 
the wing of each which is called sot qui laisse, which 
means, of course, " only a fool leaves it," and is con- 
sidered the best part of the turkey. Indeed, in the 
opinion of the Marquis, it was the one thing worth 
eating at all. 

One day when I called upon Mrs. Healey a lady was 
sitting in the room talking to her, and that day Mrs. 
Healey was particularly deaf. When I entered the room 
she said to the lady, who was the Duchesse de Grammont 
{nee Miss Mackinnon, daughter of the Mackinnon of 
Mackinnon) : "I think you know this gentleman ; his 
mother you know very well." To which the Duchesse 
replied : " No, I have never had the pleasure of meet- 
ing him before." But Mrs. Healey could not hear one 
word she said, and the Duchesse added : "I can only 
say he is very much Uke the Prince Imperial." How- 
ever, I introduced myself, which was very easy, as she 
was an old friend of my mother's, though I had never 
met her till then, 

Mrs. Goodenough, whose Christian name was Victoria, 

lO 



In Paris and Vienna 1879 -1904 

and who was a goddaughter of our late Queen Victoria, 
was sometimes at Mrs. Healey's, being a relation of hers, 
and she told an amusing story of the time when she 
entertained a good deal in town. One evening there was 
a great number of people at a ball at her house, and 
she had prepared a good supper for them ; but to her 
surprise they all went off about eleven o'clock, as there 
was also a party at Rothschild's the same evening. 
When, however, she had gone to bed, all the people, 
finding that there was no supper at Rothschild's, came 
back to her house for one ; but she wisely refused to 
have the door opened to them at all. 

An old lady who very often came to see Mrs. Healey, 
and who used to boast of the excellent dinners that she 
had at home, was describing one day to a lady who 
called upon her just before dinner a most elaborate 
dinner which she and her husband were about to sit 
down to ; the lady, who must have had a great deal of 
curiosity in her nature, determined to stay till the dinner 
was served, as she knew the husband was a most punc- 
tual man, and would not have his dinner put off for even 
five minutes. But to the surprise of the lady who 
waited, instead of soup, fish, entrees, etc., the servant 
came in with the remainder of a cold leg of mutton, 



Society Recollections 

whereupon the lady of the house made all manner of 
excuses for her cook, and tried to pass the matter off in 
that way. 

One of the most charming members of the American 
colony in Paris was Mrs. Joe Riggs, formerly Miss Van 
Zandt, who had a lovely voice, and used often to sing a 
solo in the church of St. Roch, and at concerts for 
charity ; she was very fond of going into society, espe- 
cially to balls, but her husband had a great horror of 
them, and though enormously rich would not allow her 
much pocket-money for amusements ; in fact, she often 
used to take the omnibus when going to some of the 
smartest balls. Though her husband knew of it, his 
heart did not relent one bit. Sometimes, although he 
did not like it at all, he accompanied her to the balls. 
I met them on one occasion at a very smart ball given 
by an American banker, Mr. Andrews, in the Place 
Vendome. They, as well as myself, were going after- 
wards to another in the Champs Elysees, and we all 
made a mistake and went first of all to the one in the 
Place Vendome. Joe Riggs said to me : " We are now 
going to the ball in the Champs Elysees, and are coming 
back here afterwards, as the supper will be excellent, 
and the one here is a much later affair, I advise you to 

12 



In Paris and Vienna 1879 -1904 

come with us, and do the same," which I did, going 
with them on foot there and back, as the weather was 
favourable. Joe Riggs was perfectly right. The supper 
was indeed a most excellent one, and at the other ball 
there was only an ordinary supper ; but champagne was 
never stinted by the Americans at their balls, but 
it was stinted by the French. 

Just about the time I am alluding to there was a 
great deal of talk about the Marquis of Anglesey, 
who had had a long love affair with an American lady 
who had recently been divorced, and most people ima- 
gined, as well as the lady herself, that the Marquis would 
marry her. She used, in fact, to say what she intended 
doing as soon as she became the Marchioness. The 
Marquis had only just succeeded to his title and to an 
income of about eighty thousand a year. My father was 
a great friend of the Marquis, and we dined once all to- 
gether at the Hotel d'Albe with two other gentlemen 
and this American lady, I remember how attentive the 
Marquis seemed to be towards her all the evening, but 
a few days afterwards an invitation came to both my 
father and myself to attend the Marquis's wedding to a 
different lady, but she too was a widow and an American. 
I shall never forget when I was introduced to the future 

13 



Society Recollections 

Marchioness in the salon in which they were married, as 
I had not seen the Marquis since our dinner at the Hotel 
d'Albe. 

It was when the Marquis's engagement to his future 
wife became known that I met Mrs. Riggs at this ball 
in the Place Vendome, and she said : " How glad I am 
the Marquis is not going to marry that other lady, but 
the one he has chosen, for now he will get into the very 
best American society in Paris ! " However, the day 
after the wedding all Paris was horrified to learn that 
the rejected American lady had committed suicide by 
poisoning herself. The marriage with the American 
widow was by no means a happy one. 

The Marquis has been dead some years now, and the 
Marchioness too. Poor Joe Riggs is also gone, and his 
wife is now the Princess Ruspoli. 

Speaking of the Marquis makes me remember that 
during the " Grand Prix " he happened to be away in 
England, but the English Ambassador, Lord Lyons, not 
knowing of his absence, sent his carriage for him, which 
was then placed at my disposal for the races. A very 
smart turn-out it was, with the finest horses in Paris, 
which was saying a good deal then. The " Grand Prix " 
in Paris is a sight well worth seeing, not only for the 

14 



In Paris and Vienna 1879 -1904 

races, but for the number of ladies in all their new toi- 
lettes for the summer, and the fine turn-outs — in fact, 
it is the next best meeting after Ascot, I think. The 
Derby in Vienna cannot at all compare with it in any way. 
One day I went to Longchamps to the races and met 
M. de Meistner, an attache of the Russian Embassy and 
a friend of Miss Fanny Pamell's, who took me home in 
his brougham from the races and told me he had been 
with Baby Thornhill all the day, but had lost sight of 
her on the racecourse. He seemed most enthusiastic 
about her, saying she was perfectly lovely. M. de Meist- 
ner was a very handsome young man, who always wore 
an eyeglass. He could not speak Russian, though he 
was at the Russian Embassy, but he spoke French and 
English perfectly. He had been some years attache 
d' ambassade at Washington, and was then a secretary 
at the Embassy in Paris. Baby Thornhill had had a 
strange career altogether, and when but a child she had 
married Sheridan, a lieutenant in the Rifle Brigade, from 
whom she became divorced. Captain Buchanan, also of 
the Rifle Brigade, told me that he saw her once in bed 
when she was quite young, and that she looked really 
quite like an angel. At the time I am writing of she 
had magnificent horses in Paris, and was extremely fast ; 

15 



Society Recollections 

but all men spoke well of her, and said that she had 
been badly treated by her husband. 

One day when I was dining with the Marquis of Angle- 
sey and some other friends, the Marquis observed that 
the pattern of the wine glasses in the restaurant was 
very pretty, and that he would get some wine glasses 
exactly like them, and that he would have his monogram 
engraved in the same way. Some one knowing his 
weakness for coronets, said, " And be sure and don't 
forget the coronet, Marquis " ; but he did not appear 
to see the sarcasm, and merely said, " Yes, to be sure." 
Although the Marquis had lived some twenty years in 
Paris he could not speak two words of French. It 
seems strange that most English cannot learn a foreign 
language, or perhaps it is that they don't give them- 
selves the trouble to learn it, I cannot say. The Ameri- 
cans in Paris, however, spoke French, most of them, very 
well indeed, and both Miss Fanny Parnell and Miss 
Minnie Warren conversed in French quite as well as in 
English, although they had a slight American accent, 
which, if it is not too pronounced (as in their case it 
was not), sounds rather pleasant. 

Among the English residing in Paris there was a 
family named Shard, consisting of the father and mother, 

i6 



In Paris and Vienna 1879 -1904 

two daughters, and two sons, who went out in EngHsh 
society chiefly, but were also very intimate with a French 
lady and her daughter, Mme. de Passy, who lived in 
the same house with them, and occupied a very fine 
apartment at the Arc de I'Etoile. I constantly visited 
both these families, and one day, on calling on Mme, 
de Passy, I found the girls of both families busily cutting 
out dresses for a ball, which much surprised me ; but 
they told me that they always made their own ball 
dresses, and were very proud of doing so. Mme. de 
Passy was very well off, so her daughter did not require 
to practise this out of economy ; she did it more for 
amusement. I happened to go to an American ball soon 
afterwards, and a young American girl asked me what I 
thought of her toilette. I said I thought it very pretty, 
and asked her if she had made it herself, whereupon she 
answered most indignantly : " No ! did you make your 
own coat and trousers ? " I tried to improve matters, 
but could never regain her good graces after this. 

Among my acquaintances was a very pretty girl of 
about fifteen or sixteen, the daughter of the Marquise 
de Sampler! , a friend of Mile, de Passy, who turned 
the head of a great many men, and was always 
flirting with different ones. Her mother used to say 
c 17 



Society Recollections 

that she would give her no dowry at all, and that her 
great beauty was quite sufficient to find her a rich hus- 
band. She was very espiegle, and I was always very 
pleased to meet her in the Champs Elysees, for she loved 
a flirtation ; her sister had made a splendid marriage. 
They said in Paris that she had received rather a large 
dowry. 

There were two American beauties, half-sisters, who 
were always beautifully dressed at balls and parties. 
Miss Hewett and Miss Zobrowski ; the former made a 
very good marriage to a French count, because her 
father gave her twenty thousand pounds as a dot, 
but to the half-sister he said he would give nothing at 
all, and told her that she must marry an old Englishman 
then living in Paris who was very rich, a man whom 
Miss Fanny Parnell perfectly detested, as he tried to 
make up to her at first. Miss Zobrowski was desperately 
in love at the time with a French marquis, but he was 
not well enough off, he said, to marry her without a 
dot, so she married the old Englishman ; and the 
day after the wedding her stepfather gave her the same 
dot as he had given to his own daughter. This, the 
poor girl thought, was adding insult to injury, and her 
marriage with the Englishman was far from being a 

i8 



In Paris and Vienna 1 879-1 904 

happy one. I used constantly to see them driving out 
in a mail phaeton together, but they never spoke to each 
other unless they were actually obliged to do so. Once 
I saw these two girls at Ascot races before they were 
married, and their costumes were so elegant and so con- 
spicuous that the English ladies did not know what to 
make of them at all. At that time EngHsh women 
dressed plainly and not at all well. Only fast women 
were then decently dressed in town, or perhaps only those 
ladies belonging to the creme de la creme of society. 

The South American colony was rather a large one 
then in Paris. A friend of ours, M. de Francisco Martin, 
who was a secretary of the legation of Guatemala, married 
a lady from the United States, a widow with a large 
fortune. We were invited to the wedding and to the 
diimer in the evening, as is the fashion in Paris after the 
marriage. The dinner took place in M. de Francisco 
Martin's hotel in the Rue Fortin, and was provided by 
Che vet from the Palais Royal at fifty francs a couvert, with- 
out wine. It is needless to say that it was most excellent, 
everything in the way of poultry and game being truffled, 
wines of every sort served — Bordeaux of the finest 
quality, Chateau Laffitte, Chateau Margaux, of the best 
vintages, ending with Chateau Yquem and champagne. 

19 



V 



Society Recollections 

The sister of the ex-Queen of Spain was there at dinner, 
the Marquise de Campo Sagrado, and royal servants were 
in attendance upon her ; she was most amiable and 
pretty. I talked to her a good deal ; her stout husband 
was there too. An Irish cardinal was also among the 
guests, and he took precedence of everybody, even went 
in to dinner before the sister of the ex-Queen; he 
was very amusing, smoked Havannah cigars, and told 
some very good stories, and was by no means prudish, 
I found. M. de Francisco Martin liked to be taken for 
an Englishman, and was constantly going to town, which 
he liked better than Paris, he said, being fond of racing ; 
he kept some race-horses, and won several races at Baden- 
Baden and other places abroad. 

A very grand fancy ball was given at the Spanish 
Embassy, at which there were some very striking cos- 
tumes, but the one which put aU others into the shade 
was the one worn by Mme. de Gambanos, the wife 
of a Spanish secretary of the Embassy, representing 
Night and Morning. Half her dress consisted of black 
pearls, all sewn over the half of the dress, and the other 
half brilliants ; she wore eighty thousand pounds' worth 
of jewels that evening, and had all her jewellery unset 
for that particular ball ; several policemen guarded her 



In Paris and Vienna 1879- 1904 

carriage when she got in and out of it. Mme. Gambanos 
was the daughter of a Chih merchant, who left her 
two miUions sterhng when he died, and the same to her 
sister, who married an Enghshman. 

I was very well acquainted with M. Pietri, who was 
a brother to the one who accompanied the ex-Empress 
Eugenie to England, and one of his daughters, Mile. 
Julie Pietri, was a very lovely girl, a good musi- 
cian, and a very great friend of mine. I constantly 
accompanied them to Musard's Promenade Concerts in 
the charming gardens where they were then held. One 
day I met Miss Theodosia ParneU there, who was quite 
as pretty as her sister Fanny, and who married a relation 
of the Marquis of Anglesey, one of the Pagets, some 
years later ; the same evening I met Lord Ronald 
Grahame, with whom I had been at Eton, and who was 
en route to Rome with his brother the Marquis. A few 
weeks afterwards his brother died in Rome, and he 
succeeded to his brother's title, and later on became 
the Duke of Montrose. He told me that he had been 
serving in the Hanoverian army, but that he found it 
was very hard work. This was previous to his joining 
the 5th Lancers, and later on he served in the Scots 
Guards. Through Mile. Pietri I got to know the 

21 



Society Recollections 

Marquise Brian de Bois-Guilbert, whom afterwards we 
saw a great deal of, as she was constantly dining with 
us, and who had a most magnificelit voice, which re- 
minded those who had heard Malibran of that great 
singer. She sang the most difficult music, and had 
learnt from Duprez, to whose celebrated concerts she 
often took us. I never heard an amateur sing so well 
in my life ; even Mrs. Riggs, who was a great singer, 
was perfectly astounded at some of her roulades ; 
people who listened to her singing went into raptures. 
She had been a most beautiful woman, and though only 
thirty-five looked a little passee ; she made up a great 
deal and was very fond of wearing very decolletee dresses, 
so much so that Mile. Waterlot, a young fair French 
girl, with whom she went once to confession, told me 
that the priest said to her, on seeing her in a rather 
decolletee dress, " Savez vous, madame, que c'est un grand 
peche, ce que vous faites Id." 

The Marquise was a most intimate friend of the 
Duchesse d'Abrantes, and often used to stay with her 
on a visit, and she was received in the best Faubourg 
St. Germain society in Paris. The Marquise was 
strict about etiquette, rather absurdly so, I thought. 
She always insisted on a gentleman offering her his arm 



In Paris and Vienna 1879 -1904 

when walking out in the streets of Paris, and never 
would walk anywhere alone. But when she was ill 
in bed she used to receive visitors to see her in her bed- 
room, which is the fashion in France. Dr. Bishop, who 
married Lord Iddesleigh's sister, was perfectly enchanted 
with her singing and with her appearance altogether, 
and so were most people. Mile. Waterlot was a 
very wealthy heiress whom I once called upon, and 
being at home without her brother, she told me that 
strictly speaking she ought not to receive me, as it was 
against French customs, but she made an exception in 
my favour, and then asked me all manner of questions 
about Miss Fanny Parnell, whom she considered per- 
fectly lovely, and wondered why she did not marry, 
for she must have received hundreds of offers. I told 
her I did not in the least know the reason why, nor did 
I, but it was whispered afterwards that she had fallen 
in love with some one in Ireland, and that was the reason 
her uncle had taken her to Paris. Miss Parnell used 
often to tell me that I reminded her of Werther, and 
told me she considered Lotte very inferior to Werther ; 
she was very fond of reading Ruskin, and some of George 
Sands' books ; otherwise she read only very serious 
works. 

23 



Society Recollections 

I went to a soiree dansante given by some French 
people at which Mile. Waterlot was present, and 
sat down beside her after a dance. She asked me not 
to be offended, but said it was not customary for a 
gentleman to sit on the same sofa with a young girl in 
France — that the people might be shocked — otherwise she 
would not mind it in the least. Going so often as I did 
to American balls, I got used to being with American 
girls and I felt quite strange when I was with French 
ones, and at times forgot where I was. I was therefore 
sometimes reprimanded by the latter. 

I knew Mrs. Hungerford very well, the mother of the 
wealthy Mrs. Mackay and Miss Hungerford ; the latter was 
rather a nice girl who met with a fearful accident as 
a child, becoming paralysed for a time, but she recovered 
entirely. She married afterwards the Count Telfner. 
Mrs. Mackay gave the most costly balls in Paris, to 
which I often went. Once she wanted to illuminate the 
Arc de Triomphe, and being told that she was not allowed 
to do it, they say she offered to buy the Arc de Triomphe, 
but I cannot help thinking that this is an exaggeration ; 
a story never loses by telling. In any case everything 
was done quite royally by her, even to the manservant's 
livery, which was scarlet and gold ; and to describe 

24 



In Paris and Vienna 1879- 1904 

the suppers would be almost an impossibility ; they 
cost thousands and thousands of francs. The society 
one met there one saw nowhere else ; none of the Fau- 
bourg St. Germain people except some few gentlemen, 
and none of the best Americans, and a few of the English. 
I once said to Miss Minnie Warren, " I have just come 
from a countrywoman of yours." She asked from whom, 
and when I told her she exclaimed, " She is not an 
American, but an Irishwoman ! " 

Isabella, the ex-Queen of Spain, used to go to Mrs. 
Mackay at times, and so did some other grandees of 
other nations staying in Paris, but very few French. 
Mrs. Mackay 's ball-dress was generally a dream. I 
remember one in light blue satin, with the sleeves all 
studded with mother-of-pearl which threw reflections of 
light of all possible colours. I danced the cotillon at 
one ball with an American girl, but found I knew hardly 
any one there, so left very early indeed. Generally 
speaking, the cotillon was better danced at French balls 
than any other. Frenchmen are more imaginative in 
combining pretty fanciful figures than men of other 
nationalities, and even at American balls, if they ever 
had a Frenchman there it was he who was invariably 
selected to lead the cotillon. I have never seen a cotillon 

25 



Society Recollections 

danced so charmingly as in Paris in any capital that I 
have been to in Europe. 

The English living in Paris did not entertain very 
much, and there was only one English lady who gave 
dances of an evening, Mrs. Willington, where only English 
were to be seen ; she told me that the Comte de Coetlegon, 
a French count, had asked her if any very rich girls 
attended her dances, to which she answered in the nega- 
tive, and so he said he was very sorry but he could not 
come to them, as he wanted to marry a rich heiress. 
There was a General and his daughter who were English, 
who once or twice a month gave concerts which ended 
up by a dance. They made the acquaintance of a 
German lady of rank and asked her to their house. 
Some one hinted that she was fast, so the General hastened 
off one day to her house, and said that he hoped that 
she would not come any more of an evening to see them ; 
the lady was most indignant and said that he need not 
have come and told her this, that it was not at all neces- 
sary to come and insult her in her own house. Every- 
body heard about it in Paris and it caused a great deal 
of laughter at the time, particularly so as it was known 
that the lady was a great friend of Lady Holland, and 
stayed oftentimes with her at Holland House. I met 

26 



In Paris and Vienna 1 879-1 904 

her years afterwards, and she read me some of Lady 
Holland's letters to her, which were all written in French, 
and she answered them in French, though she spoke 
English fluently. This lady was the guest of Prince 
Ludwig Ferdinand of Bavaria and his wife, Princess de 
la Paz, Infanta of Spain, at Nymphenburg. I met her 
in Vienna, when she had come from them, where she 
was given a stall at the Opera and Burg Theatre during 
her stay there by the Hof Intendant, at the request of 
the Prince of Bavaria. 

Captain Lennox Berkeley, afterwards Lord Berkeley, 
was one of the nicest Englishmen in Paris at that time ; 
his wife was a daughter of Count de Melfort, a brother 
of Lord Perth in England. Berkeley was a great musician, 
a good linguist, and a most entertaining man. He was 
very fond of gambling, and in his younger days, having 
lost all his money at Homburg, he asked a banker to 
lend him two thousand florins. The banker refused, 
but gave him a ticket in the Frankfurt lottery, which 
he took, as he did not like to offend the banker. A fort- 
night afterwards the lottery was drawn, and he had won 
the gros lot of seventy-two thousand florins, or six thou- 
sand pounds. Next day he gave a supper to all the 
English he knew at the Hotel de Russie, at Frankfurt, 

27 



Society Recollections 

which cost him two thousand florins, and lost the rest 
at the tables of Homburg six months later. Captain 
Berkeley and his wife used to give musical soirees at 
which the greatest performers from the opera took part, 
for example, Taffanel the great flute-player, and Sighicelli 
the violinist, and many others. Berkeley was passion- 
ately devoted to music, playing several instruments 
himself. I never heard an Englishman speak French so 
beautifully as he did, without any accent at all. One 
day he related to me that he had seen something on 
the boulevards in a kind of smaU theatre, which he could 
not make out at all, and advised my going to see it too. 
I went, and saw a man who held on a plate the head of a 
woman, and underneath on the ground was the body 
of the woman lying flat on her back without a head. 
The man who held the plate in his hand, though it was 
at the same time suspended from above by two strings, 
for what reason I know not, kept passing his hand under- 
neath the plate to show one that there was no possible 
connection between the head and the body on the ground. 
At times he swung the plate to and fro, and the head 
looked very ghastly indeed. When I saw Berkeley 
afterwards I asked him how he thought it was done, 
and he said that he thought the head belonged to a 

28 



In Paris and Vienna 1879- 1904 

different person than the body, but he could not quite 
make it out, although he fancied it was done by means 
of looking-glasses ; and I have since heard from a man 
on the stage, who had much to do with those sort of things, 
that it was entirely arranged by means of looking-glasses. 
Berkeley's mother-in-law, the Comtesse de Melfort, 
was very much interested in hypnotism and similar 
things ; she told a story of how once Erichsen called on 
Lady Lovelace at her country place, and the girl who 
opened the door to Erichsen and a gentleman who accom- 
panied him said that her ladyship was not at home, 
but asked them to go into the drawing-room and wait 
till she came in, which they did. When Erichsen looked 
at the girl he saw that she was an easy subject for hypno- 
tism, and he hypnotized her immediately. She seemed to 
faint away, and Lady Lovelace, coming in suddenly, was 
quite alarmed, but Erichsen explained what he had done 
and asked Lady Lovelace to put her any questions she 
wished to know. Lady Lovelace at once asked where 
her husband was, and the girl stated somewhere in India, 
which was quite correct, and what he was then thinking 
of, and she answered that Lord Lovelace was then think- 
ing of building a conservatory to his house when he 
came home. Lady Lovelace was so much struck with 

29 



Society Recollections 

these answers that she immediately wrote them down, 
and asked Erichsen to put his signature and also that 
of his friend to the paper, and had it framed, and when 
Lord Lovelace returned home from India she showed 
it to him ; he could scarcely believe his eyes, for it was 
precisely what he thought of doing at that particular 
time, he remembered quite well. 

Another son-in-law of the Comtesse de Melfort was 
the Baron van Havre, and he too was very much inter- 
ested in these sciences ; but he told me that he had 
never believed in them until once in Paris he went to 
see a somnambulist, who when she was sent off to sleep 
went into a trance, and the man who was there asked 
the Baron if he had anything with him belonging to 
anybody he cared to know something about. He 
answered that he had a locket containing some hair of 
a relative (it was his mother's hair), and the man then 
told the Baron to put the locket in the girl's hand and 
to ask her any questions. Then the Baron inquired 
whose hair it was, when the girl said, " I now can see the 
lady whose hair is contained in the locket ; she is lying 
ill in bed, and has a garde malade with her ; she is evi- 
dently very seriously ill ; she has also a doctor attending 
upon her, but he is prescribing a wrong medicine entirely 

30 



In Paris and Vienna 1879 -1904 

for her ; she ought to take quite a different medicine." 
Then the girl repeated the formula of the medicine she 
thought the lady ought to have taken, which the Baron 
wrote down according to her dictation in Latin. When 
the Baron returned to Brussels he found his mother ill 
in bed, and the King's doctor who attended her had 
prescribed the medicine which the girl had mentioned, 
and the Baron showed the other prescription dictated 
by the girl, whereupon the doctor imagined evidently that 
the Baron had consulted some doctor in Paris, who had 
written him the prescription. When the Baron, how- 
ever, stated the facts, the King's doctor said it was so 
marvellous that he would go on purpose to Paris to see 
the girl. Unfortunately when he did so he found that 
the girl had disappeared, and they told him that they 
thought she had since died. 

Of the Polish society, I knew the Comtesse Dzialyn- 
ska, sister of the Prince Czartoryski, and went to her 
soirees every Wednesday, where I met the best Polish 
society in Paris assembled. An Englishman, Mr. Scott, 
used always to be invited too, who played the piano 
delightfully. He always played Offenbach's " Hoffmann's 
Erzahlungen " at the express wish of the Countess, 
who delighted in hearing it, as well as the " Belle Helene." 

31 



Society Recollections 

Countess Dzialynska gave me a letter of introduction 
to Alphonso XII, King of Spain, when I went, as I did 
later, to Spain, as she was on very intimate terms with 
him. He used always to come to her house before he 
became King of Spain, and when he resided in Paris. 
I also knew the Comtesse Czerwinska, whom her friends 
called la petite comtesse. She was separated from 
her husband, and I met the Prince Jean Radziwill at her 
apartment, as well as M. Lescuyer d'Attainville, the 
grandson of the Prince de Rivoli. Some people used to 
think she was secretly employed by the Russian Govern- 
ment to find things out ; she was certainly interested 
a great deal in politics. I went with her once to the 
Concours Hippique, and she asked me to procure her 
a ticket for a very smart French hal costume in a private 
house, which I did, but I did not go to it myself. I met 
two lovely Russian girls at a ball which was given on 
purpose for them by a French legitimist family ; they 
were goddaughters of the late Czar, Alexander III, and 
I danced with one of them, and she asked me if I did not 
think she had a beautiful complexion, which I admitted 
was the case ; she then asked me if I knew to what it 
was due, and I said I did not, whereupon to my surprise 
she said that she and her sister had always kept a nour- 

32 



In Paris and Vienna 1879 -1904 

rice since they were children, which reflection would have 
very much shocked an English lady, and even I was 
rather startled at the remark, but honi soit qui mat y 
pense is our motto, and it is strange we English so rarely 
act up to it. 

Among the English who were not always in Paris, 
but resided there for some months at a time, was Lord 
George Loftus, whose nephew was the Marquis of Ely. 
He was a most amusing fellow and always lamented 
that he had a nephew, for if it had not been for the nephew 
he would have been the Marquis of Ely. One day, on 
his calling upon a lady who lived rather high up au 
quatrieme, he said, " My dear lady, your apartment is 
very nice indeed, but, good Lord ! I have never been 
so near heaven in my life." And the serious way in 
which he said it, without any sign of a smile on his face, 
made those who heard him say it laugh immensely. I 
remember meeting him once at Boulogne-sur-Mer, when 
he pointed out to me a monument very high up, seen 
from the Casino, and he said that he had fought two 
duels there, one with the Duke of Wellington, and one 
with Lord Winchilsea, but with no important issue in 
either case. 

General Herbert Slade and his brother, General William 

D 33 



Society Recollections 

Slade, resided for some months in the year in Paris then. 
The former had commanded the King's Dragoon Guard's, 
and the latter the 5th Lancers. Herbert Slade was a great 
epicure, and had a horror of meeting English people 
abroad, always preferring the French society to the 
English in Paris. He used to ride a good deal in the 
Bois de Boulogne. Once meeting him at the " Rag " 
I told him that I had just come from Vienna ; he in- 
quired whether there were many English there. I told 
him scarcely any, whereupon he said that it would be 
just the place to suit him, " As I do not care for the 
English one meets abroad." General William Slade was 
married to the daughter of Sir Henry des Voeux, and had 
two very charming children, a son and a daughter, who 
were particular friends of mine. General William Slade 
told me that when he commanded the 5th Lancers there 
was a captain in his regiment who always bought old 
screws to ride, so the General told him unless he got a 
decent horse he should have to march on foot on parade, 
which he really did for a time, so the General told me. 
Captain the Honourable Denis Bingham, who was married 
to a French lady and had a very nice daughter, lived in 
Paris, but did not go much into society there ; he acted 
as correspondent to the " Daily News." I saw more of 

34 



In Paris and Vienna 1 879-1 904 

his brother Albert Bingham, who was quite a society 
man. He accompanied Lord and Lady Brassey on their 
tour round the world, and drew all the illustrations in 
Lady Brassey's book. Captain Howard Vyse, nick- 
named " Punch," formerly of the " Blues," was a great 
deal in Paris, but he never quite mastered the French 
language, though he lived for years in Paris, and died 
there. 

There were many other English whom I rarely met : 
Tom Hohler, who married the Duchess of Newcastle; 
Fred Milbanke, late of the " Blues," who married a 
Belgian actress, Mme. Douglass ; and several others. 
I have forgotten to mention Captain Mackenzie Grieves, 
formerly of the 2nd Life Guards, who did a great deal 
to encourage racing in Paris, and whom I never saw 
excepting on horseback ; he seemed to ride all day long. 



35 



CHAPTER II 

PARIS— THE OPERA AND THE THEATRES 

AT the Grand Opera in Paris at that time Nilsson 
was the principal singer. I heard her in " Faust," 
by Gounod, and was dehghted with her voice. She 
personated Gretchen or Marguerite in a charming man- 
ner. Her blonde hair suited the role she played well, 
though her acting was not quite up to that of Adelina 

6 

Patti in the part, according to my taste. She also sang 
the role of Ophelia in " Hamlet," by Thomas, which 
suited her even better, and this opera was given night 
after night for months at the Grand Opera. " La 
Favorita," by Donizetti, used also often to be given 
with Faure, who had a world-renowned reputation at 
that time. The opera I preferred seeing at the Grand 
Opera was " L'Africaine," by Meyerbeer, for it was so 
marvellously well mounted. Krauss, an Austrian, sang 
the role of Selika ; the divertissement was beautifully 
danced to the delightful ballet music, and it pleased one 
so much for the mise en scene was so fine. I have seen 

36 



In Paris and Vienna 1879 -1904 

" L'Africaine " at Co vent Garden miserably mounted and 
with no corps de ballet at all, and also in Vienna at the 
K. K. Hofoper, where it is far finer than in London. There 
was no comparison whatever, but still, it pleased me best 
in Paris, as far as the mise en scene and divertissement 
were concerned. 

A ballet was rarely given at the Grand Opera in Paris, 
and then it was either " Sylvia " or " Coppelia," by 
Delibes, of which the music is a dream. The principal 
danseuse was Sangalli, an Italian, who was one of the 
finest dancers in Europe, exceedingly strong on her 
points, and her pirouettes were astounding. People who 
never went to the Opera on other occasions used to go 
merely to see her dance. Sometimes she would dance in 
" La Source," also by Delibes, which is a very pretty 
little ballet. There was a great run on Meyerbeer's 
operas then, " Robert le Diable," " Le Prophete," and 
" L'Africaine " being given very constantly, and they 
were wonderfully well put on the stage (though the 
singers perhaps could not compare with Co vent Garden), 
yet the mise en scene and divertissement made up for 
what was missing in other respects. 

Mrs. Mackay endeavoured to obtain a box at the 
Grand Opera, and offered one milUon francs for one, but 

37 



Society Recollections 

she failed in her endeavours. Mrs. Riggs was more fortu- 
nate, for she had a box with some friends, to which she 
went three times a week always. Most of the people I 
knew did not care much for the Opera in Paris on ac- 
count of the singers, apart from Nilsson and Faure ; on 
the other hand, they were enchanted with the Opera- 
Comique, as there were better singers engaged there. 
Miss Warren and her sisters used always to go in a box 
to the Opera on Friday, the fashionable night. They 
were the only constant attenders of the Opera I met at 
balls and parties in Paris. When Adelina Patti sang 
aux Italiens, which she did for a time, boxes and 
stalls were at a premium. I was exceedingly fortunate 
at that time, for Mrs. Staniforth, a daughter of Sir 
Frederick Slade, happened to be away in London, and 
she very kindly placed her box at my disposal. I went 
every night, and heard Adelina Patti at her very best, 
for she was then about eight-and-twenty, and used to 
sing in "La Figlia del Regimento," by Donizetti, and 
" Lucia di Lammermoor," by Donizetti, and " II Barbiere 
di Seviglia," by Rossini. I shall never forget the ex- 
treme beauty of her voice, so rich and pure, and her 
roulades were like a string of beautiful? pearls. Her 
upper notes were as clear as crystal, and her lower notes 

38 



In Paris and Vienna 1879 -1904 

had a richness of sound Uke velvet in its softness. I 
have never heard such a voice before, and do not sup- 
pose I shall ever hear the like again, though I have 
heard Sembrich, Albani, Lucca, Melba, Calve, and many 
others ; but what are they to compare with Adelina 
Patti ? It is like comparing the light of the moon to 
that of the sun. I am not speaking of the Adelina Patti 
of the present day, for after having heard her in her 
youth, I have no wish to hear her in her age ; it would 
seem sacrilege to do so. I can still remember her in 
" La Figlia del Regimento," with what entrain she sang 
the song " II est la, il est la, il est la, morhleu ! " It 
made one's heart jump up to one's throat, and she played 
the drum with such spirit that you could see she had 
Spanish blood in her veins. Altogether I was charmed 
with her, not only with her exquisite voice, but also 
with her lovely little face with black eyes which were 
remarkably beautiful. 

I knew a lady in Vienna, whom I first made the 
acquaintance of in London, Mme. Oppenheim, who 
was a great beauty in Vienna, and who had a striking 
resemblance to Patti. When she was in London she 
called on Patti, who was then married to the Marquis 
de Caux, and Patti was also struck with the likeness of 

39 



V 



Society Recollections 

the lady to herself. They afterwards became friends, 
dining often together in town. Strange to say, I have 
often remarked that people who resemble each other in 
face have mostly the same character. As Patti left the 
Marquis de Caux for Nicolini, so Mme. Oppenheim 
left her husband for Lord Alexander Kennedy years ago, 
when he was Ambassador in Vienna, but they are now 
both dead and gone. 

The Opera-Comique was the old house, very small 
indeed, but having exceedingly good singers. Telazac, 
the tenor, was admira'ble, and so was Mme. Carvalho. 
It was quite a treat to hear them sing with Mile. 
Bilbaut-Vauchalet in " La Flute Enchantee," by Mozart. 
The Opera-Comique was then, I think, almost better 
frequented by ladies than the Opera. Men, of course, 
went to the Opera for the ballet, or rather to talk to the 
danseuses, as every owner of a fauteuil at the Opera has 
the permission to go behind the scenes during the 
intervals, and have a talk to the danseuses, which is 
considered a great privilege, as only the creme de la 
creme of men's society is to be seen there. 

The danseuses have generally the pick of the men in 
Paris ; even the rats, as they call them, have gene- 
rally a rich marquis or count for a lover, and some of 

40 



In Paris and Vienna 1879 -1904 

them make very good marriages indeed. A great friend 
of mine, James Doyne, who was with me at Eton, came 
over to see me with a friend of his, Richards of Ona 
Vara, in Ireland. We tried to get places for the Opera, 
but did not succeed. We could only get up among the 
"gods/' from where you could not even see the house, 
so Doyne held Richards literally by his feet, with his 
head hanging downwards, to catch a glimpse of the 
house, which he was so desirous of seeing before he left 
Paris. Poor Richards, who was quite a boy, died in 
Ireland a few weeks afterwards. I was very sorry to 
hear of his death of typhus fever. Jim Doyne died many 
years afterwards, also in Ireland. Doyne and myself 
were once the guests of Lord Fitzwilliam in Dublin for 
three weeks. When we went with Lord Fitzwilliam's 
sons to the Punchestown races we were all very un- 
fortunate — Thomas FitzwiUiam losing his watch and 
chain, and William Fitzwilliam being paid a bet with 
half a five-pound note and half a ten-pound note stuck 
together. I had a five-pound note stolen from me, but 
I recovered it the next day from the man who stole it, 
and the thief got three months for it. The trial took place 
at Naas before Baron de Robeck, whom we knew per- 
sonally. I was lucky enough to be able to recognize 

41 



Society Recollections 

the man on the racecourse the next day, and to have 
him arrested. When Doyne was in Paris, the theatre 
which pleased him and Richards the most was the 
Theatre des Varietes, where the " Grande Duchesse de 
Geroldstein " was played every night, with Mile. 
Schneider as the Grande Duchesse, and the actor Dupuis 
taking the principal man's part. 

Hortense Schneider was quite famous in the role she 
created ; she sang and acted that style better than any 
one else then living. My friends both thought it was 
better given than in London, but not nearly so well 
mounted, and the costumes of the other actresses were 
not so nice as in town. " La Belle Helene " used also 
to be given with Hortense Schneider in the chief role, 
which, if I mistake not, she created, as well as " L'CEil 
Creve," of Herv6, in which she played, and " Les Voy- 
ages de Gulliver." The only time I met Herve, the 
composer of " L'OEil Creve," was when he was the con- 
ductor at the Empire in London, and I had written a 
" variation " of a ballet to be danced by the famous 
dancer Maria Giuri, who had rehearsed it several times ; 
but on the evening of the performance Herve positively 
refused to conduct it, alleging as an excuse that people 
would say he had not been able to write the " varia- 

42 



In Paris and Vienna 1 879-1 904 

tion " himself, and had got me to compose it. More- 
over, he said it was written with trumpets in the 
orchestra, and he did not possess any trumpets, but 
only horns — in short, he would not give it at the last 
moment. 

Maria Giuri was the premiere danseuse at the Scala, 
Milan, and the finest and most graceful dancer in every 
respect that I have ever seen. She was exceedingly 
pretty too, and danced at Co vent Garden during the 
opera season for many years. She was more highly paid 
than any other dancers who danced at Covent Garden. 
Maria Giuri danced before the three Emperors of Austria, 
Russia, and Germany, in Poland, and received a decora- 
tion in brilliants from each of them. What enraged 
Herve so much against me was that on one occasion I 
wanted to pass Maria Giuri a diamond bracelet on to 
the stage, and Herve said it could not be done, when 
the manager of the Empire, Mr. Hitchins, wrapped it up 
among some flowers, and told me to throw it thus on 
to the stage, which I did over the head of Herve, who 
was very angry indeed. 

The Theatre Fran^ais was in those days at its very 
perfection, having the finest actors in the whole world. 
No one could compare with Delaunay in certain roles. 

43 



Society Recollections 

He always took the part of a young lover ; generally 
speaking, he preferred to play in pieces by Alfred de 
Musset, such as : " On ne Badine pas avec I'Amour," 
"II faut qu'une Porte soit Ouverte ou Fermee," or "II ne 
faut Jurer de Rien." To see him take the part of a jeune 
amoureux in one of these plays was really a treat indeed 
to any one who understood French and cared at all 
about acting. I remember seeing Delaunay in " Paul 
Forestier," in which he played the part of a young 
painter who had a liaison with a married woman (acted 
by Mile. Favart), which his father disapproved of, and 
he came to tell her that he was obliged to break it off. 
The manner in which they both acted their parts I shall 
never forget. Mile. Favart was as great an actress as 
Sarah Bernhardt in modern comedy ; and she had an 
intrigue with Delaunay in reality up to her death ; she 
was quite as good as Aimee Desclee, who used con- 
stantly to act in England, and was perfectly marvellous 
in " Diane de Lys," by Alexandre Dumas fils, though 
Aimee Desclee never performed at the Theatre Fran9ais. 
There are very few actresses in modern comedy who 
ever came up to her. 

Another play in which Delaunay was so good was 
" La Cigale chez les Fourmis," and also in " Le Demi- 

44 



In Paris and Vienna 1879- 1904 

monde," by Alexandre Dumas j&ls. Delaunay has 
never been replaced, especially in Alfred de Mussel's 
plays, which now can never be given at the Fran9ais 
since he retired from the stage. He continued to play 
the part of jeune premier up to the age of sixty, and 
died two or three years ago near Paris. Le Bargy is the 
only actor at the Fran9ais who has adopted his style. 
I have seen him quite recently act in " L'Ecole des 
Femmes," in which he was certainly excellent. Got was 
another fine actor in those days, but of a different style, 
generally taking the parts of a father of a family, 
or an old bachelor, and his acting was irreproachable. 
Mile. Reichemberg was a charming ingenue. It is 
of her that Theophile Gautier says : " Cest un reve, 
c'est le printemps que Mile. Reichemberg."" She was 
perfectly delightful in "La Joie fait Peur " ; her 
voice was so soft, so melodious, and she was always so 
naive, quite like a child on the stage. For young girls' 
parts I have never heard any one to equal her. Of 
actresses at the Fran9ais in those days the best were 
Mile. Baretta, Mile. Broisat, Mile. Arnould Plessy, Mile, 
Bartet, and the bright, lively Mile. Samary, who died when 
she was but a girl ; she played in " La Souris," in which she 
made a very great success. Of the actors, after those 

45 



Society Recollections 

I have mentioned, the best were Worms, Mounet Sully, 
Coquelin and his brother, Bressant. I cannot say I 
much cared for Coquehn's style of acting ; it was 
always rather exaggerated, but in England and in 
Austria he has met with very great success lately, I 
know. 

Every Tuesday the monde elegant goes always to the 
Fran9ais ; it is the fashionable night. What strikes a 
foreigner so much is the total absence of any orchestra, 
which is rather a relief, because one goes there to see 
acting, and not to listen to bad music. 

One evening I went to the Fran9ais when Sarah Bern- 
hardt played in " Phedre," and Mounet Sully acted with 
her. She was not at all celebrated in those days, but I 
could not help being struck with her wonderful power 
of acting and her sweet voice. Some weeks after I tra- 
velled from Paris to Vienna with an Austrian, who told 
me I ought to see Wolter at the Burg Theatre act, whom 
he thought superior to any French actress. I went with 
him and heard Wolter act, and he then asked me my 
opinion. I told him that Wolter could not hold a candle 
to the actress Sarah Bernhardt, whom he did not know 
even by name, though he had lived many years in Paris, 
and always went to the Frangais when there. Of the 

46 



In Paris and Vienna 1879- 1904 

smaller theatres, I was very fond of the Palais Royal, 
where I saw a piece called " La Boule," which is about a 
man and his wife, who quarrel about la boule which 
they eventually go to law about, and the judge asks 
what la boule means. A barrister explains to him 
it is a hot- water bottle, which the wife always insists 
upon having in the bed to warm her feet, whereas the 
husband objects to it, saying it is unhealthy. The play 
is immensely amusing, and sparkles with jokes. The 
judge finally tried to settle the delicate question, and 
to make them live peaceably together again — not like 
our judges, who either decide for one party or the 
other. 

Another very amusing play which was given here, and 
had a great run, was called " La Cagnotte," meaning the 
money-box, which is the story of a party of country 
people, who put their winnings at cards into a money- 
box and decide that with this sum they will spend their 
holiday in Paris. They first of all go to an expensive 
restaurant there, and when the bill is sent in they are 
quite horrified at it, but pay it all in sous, to the indig- 
nation of the waiter. They get into no end of scrapes, 
and are arrested by mistake, being taken for a band of 
thieves, and they pass the night in prison, but they are 

47 



Society Recollections 

liberated afterwards, so all's well that ends well. I had 
the pleasure of seeing Salvini act in Paris in "La Morte 
Civil," a wonderfully depressing play, in which he re- 
presents a man who has come out of prison to find his 
wife married and his daughter grown up. He enters the 
salon, being unknown to his daughter, and she kneels 
down and offers up a prayer for him, and then finally 
he dies in the presence of his wife and daughter. 
Salvini's acting was grand, and the actress who played 
the young girl acted her part so pathetically, that there 
was hardly a person in the house who did not shed tears. 
I sat next to a very pretty French girl of sixteen, who 
asked me if I knew Alphonse Daudet, and I said " No," 
and she then pointed him out to me in the stalls, and 
hurried off at the end of the play to meet him, and go 
away with him from the theatre. There was a play at 
the Theatre du Gymnase which all the world went to 
see, in which Worms played the principal actor's part. 
Mme. Pasca, a great celebrity as an actress, played the 
part of the heroine. It was called " Comtesse de Ro- 
mani," and the subject of it is this : A Russian count 
marries an actress, but on condition that she entirely 
gives up the stage for ever. However, there are some 
private theatricals given in St. Petersburg for charity, 

48 



In Paris and Vienna 1879 -1904 

and the Countess takes part in them with great success, 
when suddenly her old passion for the stage comes back 
to her again, and she breaks loose from her husband and 
goes back to the stage, leaving him for ever. Mme. 
Pasca's acting was wonderful in this play, and Worms 
played so well that he was engaged afterwards for the 
Theatre Fran9ais. This was one of the best plays I ever 
saw in Paris at the time I am speaking of. There are 
numbers of little theatres, such as the Vaudeville ; the 
Folies Dramatiques ; the Ambigu ; the Renaissance ; 
the Porte St. Martin, at which latter theatre historical 
plays are chiefly produced ; the Chatelet, at which there 
are usually fairy-tales represented with a ballet ; the 
Odeon, which ranks next to the Theatre Fran9ais. At 
that time Porel was the leading actor there ; the ac- 
tresses usually pass on to the Theatre Frangais after- 
wards, if they are worth anything at all. 

At the Theatre Lyrique I remember going to see Victor 
Masse's " Paul et Virginie," which did not have quite 
the success that people awaited of it. Capoul, who was 
a renowned tenor, took the part of Paul, and Virginie 
was sung by a young singer. Mile. Bilbaut Vauchelet, 
but somehow it did not take the fancy of the public. 
There was one very pretty air in the opera, which was 
E 49 



Society Recollections 

an old English melody, and this air repeated itself con- 
stantly throughout the opera ; but beyond this there 
was nothing remarkable in the music, and from so well- 
known a composer one expected greater things. I knew 
an actress at the Porte St. Martin, Gabrielle Ter9in, who 
was a bright, lively girl of about eighteen. She came to 
me once at two o'clock in the morning, as her friend had 
been suddenly taken ill with diphtheria. She told me 
she was very hungry after the theatre, so I had to send 
for a supper, and after having had a very good supper, 
she told me she would not return home as the doctor had 
forbidden her to occupy the same room as her friend, 
but would look out for an apartment when the day 
was more advanced. I sat up with her, and felt con- 
siderably tired all the next day. 

At the Chatelet Hortense Schneider played for a time 
in the " Voyages de Gulliver," in which she was very 
good indeed ; it was in this play that she met with her 
first success. The Folies Bergeres was generally fre- 
quented by foreigners. I went there once with Gerald 
Slade, son of General Herbert Slade, who had come to 
Paris for a few days only. 

The Cirque d'Ete and the Cirque d'Hiver were both 
very well patronized, especially the former in summer, 

50 



In Paris and Vienna 1 879-1904 

when it was considered the thing to go to the Cirque 
d'Ete on a Saturday night, at which all the very smart 
people appeared. At that time there were some very 
good lady riders. Loisset, who afterwards married the 
Prince Reuss — the other sister was killed in the circus 
by a fall from her horse. Eliza Baroness Rhaden, a 
friend of the Empress of Austria, was a famous rider, too, 
of the haute ecole, but she afterwards, poor woman, went 
totally blind, and a collection had to be made for her 
quite recently. At the Cirque d'Hiver on a Sunday 
afternoon there were some excellent classical concerts 
under Pasdeloup, who endeavoured to make the French 
like Wagner's music, but they would not then even 
listen to it. The place became noisy, and every one 
hissed, so that he had to make his orchestra leave off 
playing altogether. 

The concerts at the Conservatoire take place also 
every Sunday afternoon, but it is extremely difficult to 
secure places, if not at times quite impossible. Colonne 
at that time used to give concerts on Sunday too at the 
Theatre du Chatelet, which were very fine indeed. 
Oftentimes he played " La Damnation de Faust," by 
Berlioz, which was a great favourite with the public. 
It is now more so I think in Germany than in France. 

51 



Society Recollections 

At Pasdeloup's concerts, in the Cirque d'Hiver, I 
heard the celebrated Miss Thursby, an American, who 
only sang in concerts, but who had an admirable 
voice. I also heard Rubinstein play the piano there, 
and conduct the orchestra to his own music. He 
was a better pianist than a composer. Paul Viardot 
played a solo there on the violin by Benjamin Godard, 
which was delightfully executed ; he played at the 
Philharmonic oftentimes in town ; he was the son of 
the celebrated Mme. Viardot, and died quite young. 
There were some very charming evening concerts given 
out of doors in the summer months at Musard's, where 
the smart people generally went, when the weather per- 
mitted, but the place has now quite disappeared. 

Another favourite place for men, and the demi-monde, 
was Mabille, also out of doors, but that has likewise 
been done away with too. Another place of amusement 
was the Moulin Rouge, which was of more recent date, 
but which has also ceased for a time to exist. In those 
days there were some excellent restaurants, such as the 
Maison Doree, where I sometimes dined ; but it was 
very expensive indeed, and Bignon was still more so, 
I found. Brebant was equally good, but not nearly so 
dear, as it was not in such a fashionable quarter. The 

52 




MISS EVA BINGHAM 



[ To /ace peig;e 52 



In Paris and Vienna 1879 -1904 

" Trois Freres," in the Palais Royal, was a favourite supper 
place with cabinets particuliers, and the waiter always 
ushered one in, ordering a bottle of champagne at the 
same time. Magny was a good dining place, near the 
Odeon. My father gave a very excellent dinner there 
once to the Marquis of Anglesey, to whom I have before 
alluded, arid to Lord Conyers and Miss Smith, daughter 
of General Smith, and one or two other people ; but the 
dinner came to as much as if it had been given at the 
Maison Doree or at Vefour, though it took place in such 
an out-of-the-way quarter. 

My friend Jim Doyne once sat down at a restaurant 
near the Madeleine, in the winter, and seeing some 
strawberries placed before him, ate them, and then ordered 
his dejeuner. Great was his surprise when, on presenting 
him with the bill, the waiter called his attention to fifty 
francs put down on it for the strawberries. Doyne 
remonstrated, and said he thought they were given in 
with the dejeuner, but it was all in vain, and he had to 
pay for his caprice of eating such a luxury at that season 
of the year. Che vet's was a great place from which 
to order dinners and suppers to be sent out, but it was 
ruinously expensive. Madame Che vet had the restaurant 
at Homburg in Germany during the gambling days, in 

53 



Society Recollections 

which she made her fortune out of EngHshmen principally. 
There were of course cheaper restaurants than those 
I have mentioned, and very good ones too, but I have 
named the most celebrated at that time, I think. Of 
the cafes, where you only obtain coffee, tea, and liqueurs, 
the principal ones were the Cafe du Grand Hotel, the 
Cafe du Louvre, the Cafe de la Paix, where men 
play billiards all day and night too, and read papers. 
You don't often see ladies in them, except the demi- 
monde occasionally. I have forgotten to mention a 
very famous restaurant in those days, but fabulously 
expensive, the Cafe Anglais, where all people dining 
there usually dressed for dinner, which is rather unusual 
in a restaurant in Paris. The thing to do in Paris is to 
go in the afternoon in a carriage to the Bois de Boulogne, 
where, in the Avenue des Acacias, you see all the monde 
elegant ; hired victorias and ordinary cabs are allowed 
to drive there, not as in the Park in London, where only 
private carriages may be driven. Some very smart 
carriages with first-rate horses one saw at times, but 
they were not quite equal to what you see in town. 
The first-rate turn-outs you can count in Paris, and by 
no means can you do the same in town. Jim Doyne 
drove with me in a victoria in the Bois de Boulogne, and 

54 



In Paris and Vienna 1 879-1904 

I remember his remarking at the time, " What would 
they say in town if one saw two men driving in the Park 
alone ? It could not be done, it would be considered 
too effeminate by a long way." 

The Champs Elysees are very nice in summer. To 
sit under the trees and see the carriages drive up and 
down is delightful, but the Bois de Boulogne is more 
agreeable if one drives. I have heard numerous com- 
parisons made between Hyde Park and the Bois de 
Boulogne. I think I prefer the former if I have to walk, 
and the latter if I drive ; both are very pretty indeed 
in themselves, mais chacun d son gout in that respect. 
For me to attempt a description of the sights to be seen 
in Paris would be absurd, as they are too well known by 
English people. But there is one thing I will say. 
How many English come to Paris and never go to see 
La Sainte Chapelle ? It is one of the finest little churches 
in the world, and certainly repays one to go and see it, 
though it is only to be seen on certain days of the week, 
as far as I can remember. I have taken many English 
friends aU over Paris, and they have all been thoroughly 
enchanted with La Sainte ChapeUe, which they have told 
me they never thought of going to visit. The environs 
of Paris — St. Germain, St. Cloud, Versailles, Sevres, 

55 



Society Recollections 

Fontainebleau — are of course delightful in summer, but 
winter is not the time of the year to see them. 
Almost on all sides of Paris are woods, delightful hills, 
water flowing, and nice country houses charmingly 
situated. 



56 



CHAPTER III 

PARIS— THE PARISIANS 

PEOPLE have often asked me if Paris is expensive. 
My answer is " Yes " and " No." There are, for ex- 
ample, very expensive apartments in the Champs Elysees. 
The Warrens, who Hved in the Boulevard Haussmann, paid 
as much as three thousand five hundred francs a month 
for their house, which they took furnished. There are, 
however, very nice apartments in the Champs Elysees 
for about three thousand francs a year, and very small 
ones even at a thousand francs a year ; but these are 
generally high up on the third or fourth floor. They 
are not fond of giving much credit in Paris, with the 
exception of the large shops, like Potins, where you can 
buy grocery, etc. ; but Miss Parnell told me that she had 
a difficulty in obtaining her biUs from her dressmaker. 
I can never say I had any difficulty in obtaining any 
bills in Paris. On the contrary, they usually demanded 
payment at once for everything I bought. Living in 
a private house or apartment is cheaper than in 

57 



Society Recollections 

London, and not nearly so many servants are necessary 
there. 

The Paris clubs are very good, the Jockey Club being 
one of the best. It costs a member about forty pounds a 
year, and they expect him to gamble, otherwise they hope 
he will retire from the club. The Cercle de la Rue Roy ale 
is also very nice, and not so expensive. Les Mirlitons 
is a club where theatrical and musical performances are 
often given, and it is considered one of the first clubs. 
There are many others, but still a club is by no means a 
necessity in Paris to men as it is in London ; it is used 
by a great many members mainly for playing cards 
and sitting up all night. Fortunes are won and lost in 
one evening constantly, so that for a man who is not a 
gambler clubs have but little attraction. I remember 
once hearing that a German prince had been entrusted 
with sixteen thousand pounds by his brother, when he 
stopped in Paris a few days, and in one night he lost the 
whole amount at baccarat, and had to telegraph to his 
elder brother the misfortune which had happened to him, 
a loss for which his brother never forgave him. 

Furniture, as every one knows, is beautiful in Paris, 
and a French salon, which has generally its walls in 
white stucco with gold, adorned with a quantity of 

58 



In Paris and Vienna 1879 -1904 

looking-glasses, is the loveliest salon one can imagine if 
it is furnished with Aubusson furniture ; but it re- 
quires a small fortune to furnish it well. Mrs. Stani- 
forth, whom I have mentioned before, furnished her 
house in Princess Gardens entirely with Paris furniture ; 
the bed alone was worth a fortune, with paintings after 
Boucher. She let her London house to the ex-Empress 
Eugenie while she resided in town. There can be but 
httle doubt that the French people are the first in the 
world as regards artistic beauty of furniture, which they 
alone know how to produce. All other nations are far 
away in the background. Those people who like cheap 
useful furniture naturally can get it in England, though 
in Vienna lately English furniture has become the rage, 
but I cannot say what for, though perhaps it is because 
it is cheap in comparison to the French furniture. I 
can give no other reason for this peculiarity of taste. 

Of the regiments one sees in Paris I don't think any 
are so striking as the Chasseurs a Cheval, of which there 
are several regiments in France. They are mounted on 
grey half-bred arabs, with long manes and tails ; the 
officers mostly belong to the aristocracy of France, and 
their uniform is light blue with silver lace, like our hussars, 
with scarlet overalls. The Chasseurs are by far the 

59 



Society Recollections 

smartest regiments in the French army. The infantry 
always appeared to me to be very slovenly in their get-up 
altogether ; they seem to march anyhow. Perhaps they 
have hidden qualities — ^let us 4iope so. If you compare 
them to the Austrian infantry, not to speak of our own 
infantry, the difference is most striking, and to all appear- 
ance the Austrian infantry is vastly superior. The 
Prussian infantry is too much overrated. I have seen 
in small towns some very poor specimens of their infantry, 
almost as bad in every way to the eye as the French. 
During the Empire, when there were regiments of the 
guard in Paris, the men had a much smarter appearance 
than during the Republic. 

Of military bands the most celebrated is the Garde 
Republicaine, which certainly is admirable. I remember 
hearing it at our Earl's Court in London. I asked a 
bandsman of our Grenadier Guards what he thought of 
their playing, and he replied that " It would take us 
years and years to play as weU — besides, we cannot do it ; 
we do not remain in the regiment long enough to attempt 
to perform the pieces they play, and all their musicians 
are professors of music ! " Of the other military bands in 
France, though perhaps a few of them are somewhat better 
than ours, I did not think very much, to tell the truth. 

60 



In Paris and Vienna 1879-1904 

A celebrated doctor in Paris, Dr. Simonnet, told me 
that the Parisians, both men and women, were a miserably 
small race ; that all the fine men and women one saw 
in Paris were from the provinces ; that the Parisians 
themselves were a degenerate race, and lacked stamina 
entirely. Frenchwomen of all classes have a very great 
deal of taste, and even the very poorest classes when 
they are young are nicely booted, which is quite the 
contrary with us. The Parisian modiste and dress- 
maker is generally very tastefully dressed, and she knows 
by instinct how to combine colours without offending 
the eye, which is rarely the case with London girls, though 
they have improved immensely in this respect within 
the last few years. Strange to say, at the time I am 
writing about the two most celebrated women belonging 
to the demi-monde were English, Skittles and Cora Pearl. 
The former, who became notorious through an English 
duke, used to be employed in a skittle alley near Bath, 
when a girl of sixteen, and in after years she came to 
Paris, where at the time I mention she was famous for 
her wonderful horses and carriages : everything was 
so quiet ; the harness and livery of her servants, and she 
herself dressed always in dark colours, so that no one, 
unless they knew who she was, would have suspected that 

61 



Society Recollections 

she was of the demi-monde. Cora Pearl, on the contrary, 
had everything very showy ; her carriages were mostly 
yellow, her servants wore powdered hair, and her own 
dresses were so conspicuous that no one could help 
noticing her at once. These women were both on the 
shady side of forty, I should say ; but so made up, it 
was very difficult to guess their precise age. I never 
could see any remains of beauty in either of them, though 
I have heard say that Skittles was pretty in her extreme 
youth, but the other must have been always une laideur, 
I imagine, though she had a fine figure. 

There was an actress named Massin who acted at 
different theatres, who was really a beauty. She had 
one of the most perfect profiles that one could possibly 
see ; nothing could have been more regular ; and in 
after years she created " Nana," of Zola, at the Ambigu, 
but she died in a lunatic asylum soon afterwards. There 
was a great number of very pretty actresses in Paris 
at that time — Mme. Judic, Jeanne Granier, Jeanne May, 
Mile. Darem of the Grand Opera, and many others. 
One must admit that whether a French girl be pretty or 
not, she always has a certain chic, which with another 
nation is rarely the case ; and more particularly the 
Parisian woman excels in this cleverness of getting her- 

62 



In Paris and Vienna 1879 -1904 

self up nicely. I have seen some very pretty women 
and girls in Paris of all classes, which makes me think of 
what the Marquise Brian de Bois Guilbert once said 
to me, that while she was in London she remarked that 
there were lovely women and girls of the aristocracy and 
of the lowest class, but that those of the middle class 
were mostly very plain indeed. There are undoubtedly 
far fewer really lovely women in Paris than in London, 
and I should say the percentage of pretty women in 
London is far greater than that of Paris, for oftentimes 
I have been to theatres in Paris without seeing one single 
pretty face. I cannot say that of London theatres. 
Certainly in London it is the fashion for young girls to 
go to theatres, whereas in Paris most of the theatres are 
totally forbidden to young girls, at some theatres even 
to young married women. 

In Germany the people have an idea that English 
women are ugly, for they judge them all from those who 
go to Germany. I had quite a quarrel once with a Ger- 
man girl who maintained this idea, and she would only 
admit that the Americans were pretty. It does seem 
strange that such pretty Americans are to be met in 
Paris, whereas an English beauty in Paris, or more 
particularly in Germany, is quite a rare thing. Why 

63 



Society Recollections 

this is I cannot say, unless the Marquise de Bois Guil- 
bert's theory be the correct one. 

The hotels in Paris are very comfortable, and nicer 
on the whole than those of London. I stayed at the 
Hotel de Russie once on the Boulevards des Italiens ; 
it had every comfort ; it had telephones in the bedrooms, 
and every modern convenience, whereas in London, 
with the exception perhaps of one or two, they are 
terribly out of date and uncomfortable in comparison. 
The late Sir William Gull told me he always stopped at 
the Grand Hotel on the top floor, paying five francs for 
his room, and with the lift it was as nice as on a lower 
floor, as the service was so very good. A very wealthy 
American, Commodore Garrison, who informed me that 
he had fourteen thousand francs a day to spend, said 
that the best hotels were in New York and in the States ; 
then in Switzerland ; afterwards in Germany ; then in 
France ; and last of all came England. It must not be 
imagined that he was prejudiced against English things ; 
on the contrary, he swore by everything that was English, 
except its hotels ; and really I cannot help thinking that 
he was not far wrong. Certainly within the last few 
years the Carlton Hotel has been built, which was not 
then in existence, nor was the Hotel Ritz constructed. 

64 



In Paris and Vienna 1879- 1904 

An Austrian lady, sister of Oberforstmeister to reigning 
Prinz zu Thum und Taxis, whom I knew, was staying in 

recent years at the G Hotel in London under the old 

management, and complained bitterly that they would 
not serve her her breakfast in her room, and that she 
was obliged to dress to go downstairs to take her break- 
fast, which on the Continent is not at all the fashion. 

Most of the houses in the Champs Elysees are beauti- 
fully built. They are all, apart from the private hotels 
(private houses), constructed in flats ; there are two 
staircases in each house. One is for the owners of the 
apartment and their visitors, and is usually very elabo- 
rate, with fine broad steps and a good carpet, the walls 
being generally in imitation marble. In the winter it 
is heated by a calorifere. The other is the escalier de 
service for the servants and tradespeople. The concierge 
closes the front door at twelve o'clock at night, after 
which one has to ring the bell, when the front door is 
at once pulled open by means of a cordon by the concierge, 
and the staircase remains lighted till the occupants of 
the apartment have entered. I mention this to show 
the difference which exists between an apartment in 
Paris and one in Vienna, and to show how far behind 
they are in Austria compared with Paris. When I come 
F 65 



Society Recollections 

to describe my stay in Vienna I will endeavour to show 
the difference of the two systems. 

The cabs in Paris at the time I am speaking of were 
not very good. The open victoria was not usually bad, 
if you managed to get a decent horse, which at times 
one did, but the closed cab was generally inferior to the 
victoria. It was, however, a great improvement on the 
London " growler." I have no doubt the cabs, like 
most things, have improved in Paris of late years. The 
omnibus, with three horses abreast, was certainly vastly 
superior to our old-fashioned omnibus, and in a Paris 
omnibus sometimes some very distinguished people 
are to be seen ; moreover, in the winter in Paris the 
omnibus is heated with hot-water pipes, whereas in 
London nothing is done to keep out the cold ; the win- 
dows are not made to open, and there is no door. Who- 
ever invented the London system of omnibus is certainly 
not to be congratulated, and it can only be compared 
with the Vienna omnibus for discomfort ; still I think 
the latter is decidedly better, for the windows can be 
opened and the door can be closed, and there are seats 
outside where the conductor stands, but not on the top 
in the Vienna omnibus. 

The shops in the Rue de la Paix are quite celebrated, 

66 



In Paris and Vienna 1879 -1904 

as everybody knows. Those on the boulevards are 
also very good indeed, but not nearly so dear, though 
far cheaper shops are to be found across the river in the 
Rue du Bac, where the celebrated shop the Bon Marche 
is situated, and here you can purchase nearly everything. 
There is a very large establishment of the same kind in 
the Petit St. Thomas, also in the Rue du Bac. I must 
say I always preferred the latter, though it may be a 
trifle more expensive. It is a very favourite shop with 
American ladies ; they buy all their underlinen, hand- 
kerchiefs, gloves, etc., there. I remember going with 
the Marquis of Anglesey to buy a fur coat there, with 
which he was very much pleased. They also sell ladies' 
costumes, hats, and in fact everything, at a quarter the 
price charged by the fashionable shops in the Rue de la 
Paix, and considerably less than the prices on the boule- 
vards. Very rich people, especially English and some 
Americans, buy their hats at the celebrated modiste in 
the Rue de la Paix, Reboux, who does not make a 
hat under one hundred francs, and also at Virot's, 
which is equally expensive ; but residents in Paris 
generally, unless they be millionaires, avoid these very 
expensive establishments. Of the couturieres the most 
famous were Worth and Laferriere at the time I 

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Society Recollections 

mention. Doucet was also very famous for dresses. 
At Worth's a lady could not obtain the very simplest 
of dresses under one thousand francs, or forty pounds. 
A lady whom I knew, a Russian married to an Eng- 
lishman in Paris, was quite in despair because she 
had quarrelled with him, and was obliged to get her 
ball-dresses at Laferriere's ; but she never rested until she 
had made up her quarrel with Worth in order to return 
to him again. There are now several others who have 
an equally high reputation, the most renowned of whom 
is Rouff, though for morning dresses Redfem is also very 
celebrated, and Paquin has also one of the highest reputa- 
tions ; the two latter are too well known in England 
for me to mention more about them. We are all aware 
that the French bon-bons are the best in the whole 
world. There is a very celebrated shop near the Made- 
leine which is world-renowned for its bon-bons, and 
there are several other shops for bon-bons equally good 
and not nearly so expensive on the boulevards. General 
Herbert Slade informed me that a French silk hat was 
infinitely better than an English one ; it was much 
lighter and made of finer silk, and he always wore one 
in Paris. Gloves and ties are also better in town for 
men than in Paris, excepting perhaps white gloves and 

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In Paris and Vienna 1 879-1904 

light summer gloves, and gants de suede. The English 
glove is a much stouter one and more adapted for the 
winter, or for riding or driving. 

Of the sugar you get in Paris there can but be one 
opinion, that it is vastly superior to that one obtains 
in England. The only place in town at which I ever 
saw French sugar was at the Cafe Royal. I remember 
an Austrian lady, sister of Oberforstmeister to reigning 
Prinz zu Thurn und Taxis, remarking about the bad- 
ness of Enghsh sugar. She said that in Vienna if they 
offered her such inferior sugar as the best in London she 
would not take any at all. They informed her at Tween- 
ing's, in the Strand, that English people will not pay the 
price they pay in Vienna for sugar, that is the reason it 
is so bad in England. French bread is nice, but it has 
rather a bitter taste ; some people prefer it to English. 
No doubt it is much lighter than Enghsh bread, but 
undoubtedly the Vienna bread is very much better than 
either of the others. Coffee used to be good in Paris 
formerly, but of late years so much chicory is mixed 
with it that it is very httle better than that you get in 
some of the best clubs and hotels in London ; I will not 
say private houses, because English cooks do not know 
how to make coffee any more than the French know 

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Society Recollections 

how to make tea. The chocolate of Marquis in Paris 
is famous, and to be bought everywhere, though 
Cadbury's chocolate in England is equally good, I 
think. Menier is also renowned for chocolate. 

Cigars are not very good, I believe, though I do not 
smoke them, but the best are " Londres," as they have 
the monopole in France ; cigarettes are also bad, yet 
you can obtain some Turkish ones. Captain Berkeley 
used always to smoke the French " Caporal " tobacco 
by preference, but most Englishmen think with me that 
it is villainous stuff. 

The Salle Drouot is a wonderful place to go to see. It 
is here that the sales of most valuable pictures and 
jewellery and all manner of things takes place. A great 
many Americans and English used to attend the sales, 
as sometimes some very fine things are picked up there 
for a song. Joe Riggs almost always attended all the 
most important sales, and bought thousands of francs' 
worth of furniture, etc. I went there once or twice, but 
the foul atmosphere was enough to knock one down. 
I don't think they ever open a window there, even by 
chance. The French Tattersalls, where the sale of 
horses and carriages comes off, is also worthy of a visit 
to those who are interested in horses. There is a place 

70 



In Paris and Vienna 1879 -1904 

in Paris to which they take all the lost dogs, called La 
Fourriere, where I have also been ; but I did not see 
any dogs there worth looking at. 

French perfumery, of course, is celebrated, and Guer- 
lain's shop in the Rue de la Paix, and Houbigant in the 
Faubourg St. Honore, Violet on the Boulevard des 
Capucines, Pinaud on the Boulevard des Italiens, are the 
most famous. Roger et Gallet is comparatively a new 
firm, as I cannot remember it in those days. There can 
be no doubt that French soaps, especially those of 
Guerlain and Lubin, whom I forgot to mention as a 
perfumer, are the best in the whole world. Fay is very 
famous for powders " La Veloutine," and quite recently 
he has made a name as a perfumer. The Empress of 
Austria always used Lubin 's soaps till of late years, when 
she occasionally used Roger et Gallet 's " Vera Violette." 
The Princess Elvira Wrbna (a Bavarian Royal Princess 
Uving in Vieima) always sends for Guerlain 's soaps, and 
many other ladies in Vienna will employ no other soap 
but Guerlain 's. 



/ 



71 



I 



CHAPTER IV 

PARIS— GRISETTES 

N the winter, when there is skating, the swell place 
to go to used to be Le Cercle des Patineurs, in the 
Bois de Boulogne, but the charges were very high in- 
deed ; there was the charge of twenty francs to go in 
\ / each time, and you had to know a member to take you 
in besides. I went several times, and saw some very 
\J beautiful skating by Americans, who were far ahead of 
the French skaters then. The Princess de Metternich 
used often to go when she was the Austrian Ambassa- 
dress in Paris ; and in the time of the Empire both the 
Emperor and Empress skated there. 

Gambetta, when I was in Paris, was President du 
Conseil, and Edward Blount, who had been at school with 
him, told me the following anecdote of him. It appears 
that Gambetta had such a dislike to going to school that 
he said to his father that unless he were taken away from 
school he would poke one of his eyes out. His father 
insisted on his remaining on at school, whereupon Gam- 

72 



In Paris and Vienna 1879 -1904 

betta did as he had threatened to do, and on his father's 
remonstrating with him, he said that if his father sent 
him back again to school he would poke the other eye 
out. Such a determined character was he, that his 
father had finally to give way to him. It was not till 
later in life that he saw the folly of his action. I re- 
member when I was introduced to Gambetta noticing 
that he had lost an eye, and then I recalled this anecdote 
to memory. 

My friend Baron van Havre was suffering from a spinal 
complaint, and was being treated by Professor Doctor 
Brown-Sequard, who was Professor of the CoUege de 
France, whom I was introduced to by the Baron. I saw 
a great deal of the Doctor, and was with him at the time 
when he treated President Garfield of the United States 
by telegram after the wound he had received. It was 
at the recommendation of the American Government 
that Brown - Sequard was consulted, and he managed 
to prolong the President's life some weeks by his treat- 
ment. Brown-Sequard was born at Jamaica, his father 
being English and his mother French ; he took her name 
of Sequard, and he became quite celebrated as a phy- 
sician in the United States, having lived there some 
years, and his first wife having been an American, In 

73 



Society Recollections 

Paris he took Claude Bernard's place at the College de 
France, and was thought most highly of as a savant. 

His last discovery was what people called the " Elixir 
of Life," in which he had great faith, having tried it 
himself. He told me that he felt quite young in body 
after having it applied, being an old man at the time. 
I wrote to him once at Brighton when he was there, to 
make an appointment to see him, and he told me he had 
received five hundred applications to see him, and that 
as he was only in Brighton for a few days mine was the 
only one he had answered in the affirmative. An 
American telegraphed to Brown-Sequard to come to 
New York to see his son, who was ill, offering him ten 
thousand pounds. Brown-Sequard answered by saying 
that he would go to Liverpool, and that the American 
could bring his son there, which would only cost him 
very little. This was actually done, as Brown-Sequard's 
refusal to go to New York was deliberate. The story 
was published in the "Lancet" after Brown-Sequard's 
death. 

Brown-Sequard was a great friend of the celebrated 
engineer Deprez, and he once told me that Deprez 
had invented a means of making a train go ten times 
as fast as the fastest train ; the expense would be fear- 

74 



In Paris and Vienna 1879 -1904 

ful, but the actual danger would not be nearly so great 
as at the present time. Deprez was one of the greatest 
engineers living, according to Brown-Sequard. I once 
asked Brown-Sequard if some medicine he had prescribed 
for me did not contain a violent poison, because a 
chemist had told me so, whereupon he replied : "If 
you only knew it, there is more poison contained 
in a glass of water than in what I have prescribed for 
you, but the public is very ignorant as regards medi- 
cines." Dr. Brown-Sequard's rival in Paris was also a 
very famous man, whom I knew very well too, Professor 
Charcot ; he was my mother's doctor in Paris. It was 
quite an undertaking to see Charcot ; at times one had 
to wait from ten in the morning until five in the evening 
in his waiting-room. I wanted to see him once, and 
sent a servant at ten o'clock to keep my place, coming 
myself at five, when some Australians who were there 
were most indignant, and insisted on entering before me. 
Charcot asked what it meant, however, and severely re- 
buked the Australian old gentleman and his wife, who 
protested, saying that I had only just arrived, and that 
they had been there since ten in the morning. Charcot 
explained to them that my servant had kept my place, 
but if I liked I could give it up to them, which I did, 

75 



Society Recollections 

and sat in the room while the consultation took place. 
The old Australian man thought he was going to have 
an apoplectic fit, which Charcot considered very prob- 
able too, and upon being asked his fee, Charcot said 
four napoleons. The old Austrahan asked him again, 
and Charcot repeated what he had said angrily. Then 
the Australian dragged out of his pocket very stingily 
four napoleons one by one, evidently thinking it was a 
high fee. Charcot was very like Napoleon I in face, 
and used to get himself up like the great man, and 
everybody was struck with the resemblance. People 
came from all parts of the world to see Charcot. This 
Australian had come, he said, purposely from Australia 
with no other object in view but to see the great pro- 
fessor of nervous diseases. The very greatest then in 
Europe were Charcot, Brown-Sequard, and Erb of 
Heidelberg. The latter I also knew very well indeed 
too. 

Berkeley's son Ernest had met with a serious accident, 
losing the sight of his eye. He thought of consulting the 
great oculist Galezowski in Paris, but he had been to 
Galezowski, he told me, and the sum — ten thousand 
francs — that he demanded for the operation was so 
tremendous that Berkeley determined to take his son 

76 



In Paris and Vienna 1 879-1904 

to town to Sir William Bowman, who performed the 
operation for one hundred pounds. 

The great dentist then in Paris was Dr. Thomas Evans, 
an American, whom I went to ; he told me I was suffer- 
ing from the same complaint of the gums for which he 
had treated the Prince of Wales, now King Edward VII. 
I got mine after a sea voyage, and it was a kind of 
scurvy, which, however, completely recovered with Dr. 
Evans's treatment. I did not find Dr. Evans very 
expensive, considering his wonderful skill and reputa- 
tion. In Vienna there are very inferior dentists, who 
charge five times as much, and what is more, manage 
to get paid. Dr. Bennett was also a very good American 
dentist in the Avenue de I'Opera at that time. The 
story of how Dr. Thomas Evans was the means of the 
Empress Eugenie escaping from Paris during the Franco- 
Prussian War has too often been told for me to repeat it. 

Of Roman Catholic preachers at that time the most 
celebrated was the Pere Didon. I remember going once 
to hear him. He preached ex tempore for about a 
couple of hours to a most attentive audience, and the 
church was so crowded that I had great difficulty in 
getting a place. The aristocracy in France is mostly 
religious, and it prides itself on being so, in opposition 

77 



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Society Recollections 

to the Republicans, who for the most part are just the 
contrary. A very pleasing sight on Christmas Eve is to 
see at the Madeleine a most beautiful cross of lovely 
flowers resting flat on the ground ; all the ladies and 
women and children kneel down and kiss the cross, 
which is called in French " L'adoration de la croix." The 
music at the Madeleine on Christmas Day is beautiful, 
and the midnight Mass on Christmas Eve, when all the 
finest singers from the Opera are engaged to sing, is 
certainly one of the things one ought to go to. After- 
wards in all the great houses in Paris a supper is given, 
which is called " Le reveillon," and a play has been 
written upon it, and is given at the Palais Royal. From 
this play Strauss 's celebrated operetta " Die Fleder- 
maus " was written, and it is the only work of his which 
is given at the Opera in Vienna, even up to the present 
day. 

Of composers in Paris I only knew my own professor, 
Emile Durand, who was a professor at the Conservatoire, 
and the well-known composer of the famous song " Comme 
on aime a vingt ans." He was the teacher of Goring 
Thomas at the time that he taught myself. I often 
used to meet Goring Thomas at his house. Thomas, of 
course, wrote charming operas and songs. He met with 

78 



In Paris and Vienna 1879 -1904 

his death, being run over by a train, the evening before 
he was going to be married, if I mistake not ; but this 
is EngUsh history. Goring Thomas was one of our best 
composers, writing in the French style, and not at all 
Wagnerian, as is the fashion, unfortunately, nowadays 
with most modern composers. 

While I was paying a visit to the Marquise de Bois 
Guilbert I observed a lady in the room in very deep 
mourning. Soon after I arrived she left, and I asked 
the Marquise who she was. She told me that she was 
the Vicomtesse de la T. ; that she had a beautiful hotel 
in the Faubourg St. Germain, and that she had never 
recovered from the sad loss of her only son and heir. 
His death, happened under the most painful circum- 
stances. It appears that the young Vicomte, who was 
a minor, had a liaison with a very pretty girl, whom he 
was very devoted to, and this had lasted for some years. 
His parents desired him to marry, and in France the 
parental will is everything ; the son is obliged to obey, 
under all circumstances. The young Vicomte had to 
break the news to this young girl, who was very much 
in love with him ; the day he told her she wept bitterly, 
and begged and implored him to come one more even- 
ing to have dinner with her before he left her for ever, 

79 



Society Recollections 

which he consented to do. They sat down to a very 
good dinner with plenty of different wines, ending with 
champagne, and while they were drinking together she 
took advantage of a moment when he little suspected 
anything to plunge a dagger into his heart. Wounded 
as he was, he managed to get home, but he died on going 
up the staircase, after having given the name of the girl 
who had killed him. The young girl was tried and con- 
victed, and sentenced to imprisonment for life. The 
mother of the Vicomte shut up the principal rooms in 
her hotel ever afterwards, receiving none but most 
intimate friends. 

Since Paul de Kock wrote his very amusing novels 
chiefly about grisettes, more modern writers seem to 
affirm that there are no more grisettes in Paris. I cannot 
help thinking that they are wrong in what they say, 
only that modern times have slightly changed their 
disposition, and that they have become more worldly, 
preferring a little luxury to the poverty with which they 
contented themselves in Paul de Kock's days. It is true, 
according to him, I suppose, that then they were per- 
fectly pleased to accept a supper or the merest trifle 
from their lovers, while now they soar higher and 
demand more elaborate things. The world has changed ; 

80 



In Paris and Vienna 1879-1904 

and as Frederic Soulie very justly says in one of his 
novels, "All is egoism and vanity in the world now." 
I made the acquaintance when I had just passed for the 
army, and was awaiting my commission, of a young girl 
in Paris, whom I first saw with her mother and whom 
I took for an American girl, as I thought she was too 
good-looking to be French. Having nothing to do, I 
followed her and her mother across one of the bridges 
over the Seine to the Rue du Bac, and saw them enter 
a house there. I walked about, when suddenly the 
young girl appeared alone, rushing along the street. I 
followed her more from curiosity than from anything 
else, and when I overtook her, she said she could not 
speak to me, but, entering a side street, gave me an 
appointment for the next day (Sunday) to drive with 
her at Boulogne. She then told me she was employed 
by one of the fashionable couturier es in Paris, and that 
if she sat up all night to do work they paid her thirty 
francs a day ; that I must never speak to her when she 
was with her mother, and never in the Rue du Bac, as 
she was well known by the tradespeople there. I used 
to meet her occasionally, generally in the Boulevard St. 
Germain by appointment. The first time I offered to 
take her to supper in the Palais Royal at the " Trois 
G Si 



Society Recollections 

Freres," she told me she had never entered a restaurant 
in her life ; at last, however, she consented to come with 
me, making all sorts of difficulties notwithstanding. I 
often went for drives with her, but could never quite 
overcome her dislike for restaurants ; she was, like all 
French girls, very fond of dress ; and the greatest plea- 
sure one could give her was to buy her a hat of a very 
stylish shape, which one could get in those days for 
about forty francs, whereas now they ask about one 
hundred francs in any fashionable shop in the Rue de 
la Paix. Her Christian name was Isabelle, which is not 
a very common name in France, and her surname that 
of a very celebrated poet with whom she was related ; 
she always told me she thought I came from the midi, 
as I was so ardent and impetuous in my likes and dis- 
likes. I assured her that I came from the very cold, 
frigid England, which she had great difficulty in believ- 
ing. I remember a very favourite expression of hers 
was " Cest selon,'' which she said repeatedly in conver- 
sation. She reminded me very much of the heroines of 
Paul de Kock's novels, though perhaps she may have 
been more luxurious in her tastes. 

I made the acquaintance some years after of a French 
girl of the same style, who was employed by one of the 

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In Paris and Vienna 1879 -1904 

leading modistes. I showed her photograph to an 
EngHsh lady, who said she had never seen such a beau- 
tiful mouth as the girl had. Her name was Renee 
Leclerc, and she was very republican in her ideas, always 
reading " La Lanterne," and she was a great admirer of 
Balzac's novels ; she said that she had no desire to live 
after thirty, and that she considered that a woman's 
life was then quite at an end. She gave me very good 
advice at that time, which unfortunately I did not take. 
A marquise wrote to me to know whether I would marry 
her younger daughter, to which Renee Leclerc advised 
me to reply at once in the affirmative, as she said they 
were of the highest nobility in France, and excessively 
wealthy ; but I hesitated and waited so long that my 
answer came too late, and the daughter was engaged to 
a French count. Years after the marquise wished me 
to marry her eldest daughter, but it was not the same 
thing for me, so I wrote and told her that my affection 
was for her younger daughter, and not for the elder one. 
Renee was very fond of a good dinner of an evening, at 
the Maison Doree or at Brebant's, where I went with 
her sometimes. It gave her more pleasure than any 
chiffons I bought for her, which was contrary to the 
taste of most girls in Paris, who think mostly of their 

83 



Society Recollections 



toilette. She told me a story of how once she had been 
invited to a wedding in Paris of very wealthy Jews, and 
that it is the custom among the Jews to give a ball on 
the night before the marriage. The young girl who was 
going to be married was dancing with her intended 
bridegroom, when suddenly her petticoat came down, 
and she went with him into a bedroom to pin it up ; 
the next day the young man utterly refused to marry 
his intended bride, giving no reasons, and the marriage 
was broken off, to the horror of the parents of the bride. 
I had heard so much of DesbaroUes, the celebrated 
chiromancien, that I went one day to consult him, and 
he certainly told me some wonderful things about what 
was going to happen to me, but what he told best was 
the past ; he made his observations from the lines of the 
hand almost entirely. Alexandre Dumas fils had a very 
high opinion of him, and pronounced a long speech at 
his tomb the day of his funeral. A young Englishman 
who was a Christchurch man at Oxford, and the private 
secretary of the Comte Zamoyski, once related to me 
how he went with the Comtesse Zamoyska, who wished 
to consult DesbaroUes ; after examining the Comtesse's 
hand, DesbaroUes informed her that she had had three 
children, which she told him was not the case, as she 

84 



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In Paris and Vienna 1879 -1904 

only had two. DesbaroUes assured her that she must 
have made a mistake, which rather annoyed the Com- 
tesse, who really felt quite confused. The Comtesse 
Zamoyska was one of the great beauties in Paris then, 
and a very rich heiress before she married, the richest 
in Poland, they said. It was Miss Fanny Parnell who 
first gave me the idea of going to DesbaroUes, as she 
had bought his celebrated book on the hand, and had 
lent it to me to read. I understand now that Mme. de 
Thebes has taken DesbaroUes' place, and all people who 
are anxious to know their future, and who believe in 
chiromancie, go and consult her for the sum of forty 
francs. DesbaroUes contented himself with twenty 
francs, which I thought quite enough ; but everything 
seems to get more expensive as time goes on. 

One evening, after leaving the Circus, it began to pour 
with rain, and I took refuge with many others in a cafe 
nearly opposite. I noticed a gentleman, who gave his 
arm to a lady standing near me ; they were both well 
dressed, and I knew him to be a member of the Jockey 
Club. The rain continued without cease, and the lady 
sat down and then they seemed to have a dispute, where- 
upon the man got up angrily and rushed off, whether 
in search of a carriage or not I did not know. The lady, 

8S 



Society Recollections 

whom I presumed was his wife, became very restless 
and looked rather in despair, and having secured a cab 
I offered it to her, which she gladly accepted, asking me 
to get in it too. I told the cabman to drive in the 
Faubourg St. Honore, where she lived, and afterwards 
I drove home. The lady asked me to call upon her ; some 
days after I did so. I found that she had a lovely apart- 
ment, her salon having walls in red silk brocade, and the 
furniture being Louis XV style. She showed me her 
bedroom, which was furnished in the same way, except- 
ing that the walls were in light blue silk, and the furni- 
ture was in the same shade of blue. She herself was a 
blonde, very pretty, about twenty-five, and with a fine 
figure. She informed me that the gentleman with whom 
I saw her upon the evening in question was a vicomte, 
and that he had made love to her, but that she declined 
to listen to him, as she herself was greatly in love with 
his brother the comte, who had lately presented her with 
a pair of very fine steppers, the finest horses in Paris 
without exception, she thought. She was very amusing, 
and had plenty of conversation ; but as I was leaving 
Paris, I only saw her once again to wish her good-bye. 

There was a German lady, Mme. Adelsberg, living 
in Paris, who was considered by some people to be a 

86 



In Paris and Vienna 1879 -1904 

great beauty ; she had certainly very lovely blue eyes 
and pretty golden hair, and her age was about thirty- 
five. When her husband was alive she was very rich, 
and kept some very fine horses, but since her husband 
had disappeared from the scene she lived rather quietly 
in an hotel of her own. Captain Hubert de Burgh, late 
of the nth Hussars, a nephew of Lord Cardigan, fell in 
love with her at first sight, and she with him ; he was 
then suffering from a spinal complaint, and she was very 
kind to him during his illness, which ended in his very 
rapid death ; in gratitude he left her all his fortune. 
I knew them both very well indeed. De Burgh was 
passionately fond of going to all the race meetings, even 
up to the time when he had to walk with crutches, 
though his doctor told him not to do so. He died when 
he was only thirty-three years old. Madame Adelsberg 
used to tell a story about Lady Cardigan, who married 
the Comte de Lancastre because she desired him to be- 
come Portuguese Ambassador at St. James's, but objec- 
tion was raised to the Comtesse his wife, so he never 
became ambassador. When they were married. Lady 
Cardigan told Mme. Adelsberg in the evening of that V 
day she was horrified to see her husband walk into her 
bedroom with a nightcap on and holding two glasses in 

87 



Society Recollections 

his hands, one containing his glass eye and the other 
his false teeth ; she said she should never forget that 
tableau in her life. He was a contrast to Lord Car- 
digan, who was a smart, dashing man, compared to her 
second husband, whom she left for ever soon afterwards. 
M. de Lancastre used to live in Paris, and constantly 
visited Mme. Adelsberg, where I met him sometimes. 
He became Due de Lancastre before his death, but I 
don't remember whether it was before or after that of 
Lady Cardigan. They never saw each other when he 
lived in Paris ; she used then to give him an allowance, 
as he had no fortune of his own. 

I W£LS introduced to a very pretty Hungarian girl 
called Csery Terka by an Englishman I knew, Hamilton 
Scrope, who made her acquaintance at Budapest ; she 
was then living with her sister in Paris, but she could 
not speak much French. I met her sister afterwards at 
Budapest, when I went there from Vienna ; she was 
almost the only person I met from Paris whom I knew 
there, if not the only one indeed. 



CHAPTER V 

MUNICH— THE DEATH OF LUDWIG II 

THE day before I felt Paris for Munich en route 
to Vienna was a very bright sunny day towards 
the end of December ; all the elegant world was to be 
seen in the Champs Elysees walking or driving. I shall 
never forget the contrast with Vienna, which on my 
arrival was plunged in snow several inches deep, the 
roofs of the houses being white with snow. It was what 
I imagined St. Petersburg was like. I had no idea that 
Vienna was such a cold place until I got there. I stayed 
in Munich one day and a night, and took the oppor- 
tunity to see the celebrated picture gallery, with which 
I was, of course, delighted, though I had already seen 
the Louvre in Paris and the gallery in Madrid ; which 
are both much finer, though Munich has some splendid 
pictures of the old masters. What surprised me at 
Munich was that when I hailed a cab a policeman came 
up to me and said, " You are not allowed to shout in 
the streets of Munich." How the people call a cab in 

89 



Society Recollections 

Munich I never got to know, because I did not stay 
there long enough for that. 

On entering a very heavy-looking conveyance, with 
the cabman wearing a black shiny sailor hat with a 
silver band round it, and a light blue coat and trousers, 
I told him to drive fast, when he said to me : " I am 
not allowed to drive any faster than I am doing at pre- 
sent ; only the King is allowed to drive quickly through 
the streets of Munich." It annoyed me considerably, 
because I had very little time, and naturally wanted to 
see as much of Munich as I could, and I had to leave 
that day for Vienna. I stayed at the Baierischer Hof, 
which was good, but the Hotel des Quatre Saisons is 
better ; you get a most excellent dinner at the latter 
hotel for a very moderate price, table d'hote being at 
a separate table all to yourself. I have been to Munich 
quite recently, and liked the Hotel des Quatre Saisons 
immensely ; it seems a favourite hotel with Americans — 
at all events, I saw plenty of them staying there. The 
Opera was closed, but I went to the Residenz-theater 
and heard " Cosi fan tutte," by Mozart, very nicely 
given indeed, though the house was small. The prin- 
cipal singer, who played the part of the soubrette, 
was a girl from Vienna, who had an extremely 

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In Paris and Vienna 1879 -1904 

pleasant voice, and acted her part very well indeed. 
The other singers were not out of the way, and the 
orchestra, although small, was large enough for the 
house. 

The last time I was in Munich we went to the Blu- 

mensale of an evening, a kind of music-hall, at which 

it is usual to have your supper during the performance. 

The real Munich cuisine is served here, and it is very 

different from that of the Hotel des Quatre Saisons, 

and cannot, of course, be compared to it. The place 

was terribly smoky, from not the best of cigars, and the 

performance was like that of a second-rate London 

music-haU. However, we amused ourselves looking at 

the different stage turns and the audience. I cannot 

say that there was a single good-looking face in the 

whole house, but I must remark that the class of people 

present was not the most distinguished ; in London 

among such an audience many charming faces would 

have been seen, even among work people. We noticed 

during our stay recently in Munich (and it must not 

be thought that we were prejudiced, for an Austrian 

young girl was with us) that we had not seen one single 

pretty girl or woman in Munich. I suppose it is that 

there are none to be seen, because we went almost every- 

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Society Recollections 

where, and used the tramway frequently, where you see 
plenty of people. 

The confectionery shops are very good in Munich : 
you can take tea in them of an afternoon ; they are 
elegantly fitted up ; they keep the newspapers, and 
they seem to replace the cafes of Vienna and Paris, and 
most people patronize them. The town itself always 
gave me the impression of being too large for the in- 
habitants ; there are such very broad streets and im- 
mensely large houses, while the former at times are 
almost deserted, which is totally different from Paris or 
Vienna, where the streets, and boulevards particularly, 
are usually thronged with people. We noticed that the 
people of Munich, more especially the women, had an 
absolute lack of taste in dress ; even at the Residenz- 
theater the ladies were dressed like cooks and house- 
keepers out for a holiday. The men of all classes do not 
give one the idea of being gentlemen, excepting some of 
those in uniform, especially in cavalry regiments, and 
perhaps a few civilians here and there. We drove to 
Nymphenburg to see the Palace, which we were shown 
over. It is very fine, and Prince Ludwig Ferdinand of 
Bavaria, who lives in the Palace, happened to be there 
while we walked through one of the rooms. We after- 

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In Paris and Vienna 1879 -1904 

wards visited the small palace of the " hermitage," which 
lies quite close to the larger palace, and used to be in- 
habited in summer by the royal family. Some of the 
rooms are very original, with a great deal of Venetian 
glass, all the lustres, mirrors, and walls being decorated 
and adorned with it. The park was very charming too, 
arranged somewhat in imitation of Versailles on a smaller 
scale, but without the numerous fountains, though there 
is rather a large artificial lake, and the gardens are taste- 
fully laid out. 

On my first visit to Munich I saw the gallery of beau- 
tiful women in the Palace, which is a collection made by 
one of the Kings of Bavaria of the portraits of some of 
the most beautiful women in Europe ; it is one of the 
principal things worth seeing in Munich. I happened 
to be in Bavaria, at Niiremberg, when the late King 
Ludwig II met with his sad end. I remember how excited 
the people were at the time ; they said that his death 
was caused by Bismarck, that he was not mad, and 
that it was merely a scheme of Prussia to get rid of 
him, as he was spending too much money and would 
possibly ruin the country. There is a very interesting 
pamphlet just issued on the King of Bavaria's last days, 
in which it is clearly proved that he was not mad ; the 

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Society Recollections 

pamphlet is written in German by a physician who saw 
the King at that time. There can be but little doubt 
that he was highly eccentric and that he never knew 
the value of money ; but how many are like him, in 
England especially, and yet they are not put in an 
asylum because they ruin their families. The beautiful 
palaces which the King of Bavaria built made some of 
his country-people rich, and they are now a source of 
revenue to the state ; in fact, all the debts that he con- 
tracted have been paid. It is certainly a great stain 
upon Germany, more especially upon Prussia, to have 
acted towards King Ludwig II of Bavaria as Bismarck 
acted. Germany is too anxious to find fault with 
England with regard to the war with the Boers, which 
she always maintains is a stain upon England, but her 
own far greater stain she seems to ignore entirely. I 
went over this summer the magnificent Palace of the 
Herrenchiemsee built by King Ludwig II ; the splendour 
of it is quite marvellous ; it is like a palace described 
in the " Arabian Nights " ; the curtains in one room 
are studded with diamonds, emeralds, and rubies, all of 
enormous size. The bed is one mass of gold ; the cur- 
tains of the bed cost thousands of pounds ; the washing- 
stand basin and jug are all of gold ; in fact, there is 

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In Paris and Vienna 1879 -1904 

if anything too much gold. It fatigues the eye to see 
nothing but gold around one. A music-case for manu- 
script music cost alone eighty thousand marks ; vases 
from Sevres, with delightful pictures after Fragonard 
and St. Aubin, are in another room, and there is a clock 
having the days of the week and months written in 
French ; and superb busts of Louis XIV and Louis XV, 
evidently showing that the King had a great love for 
France, and, what is more, he designed everything he 
wanted himself. The Palace is in imitation of Ver- 
sailles. The Galerie des Glaces, which extends to the 
whole length of the Palace, contains, on either side, 
looking-glasses heavily laden with gold decorations ; and 
the gallery is lighted by means of two thousand 
five hundred candles. The King had this Galerie des 
Glaces lighted only three times in his Hfe, and then only 
for himself to see the effect it produced. The state bed- 
room contains a bed which cost half a million of marks, 
in which the King had never slept, preferring the smaller 
bedroom, which itself is very magnificent. 

There is a very fine picture after Vanloo of Louis XV 
in his youth in the Galerie des Glaces, and there is only 
one picture of the King when very young in the palace. 
The building is not finished ; some statues, which were 

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Society Recollections 

intended to be constructed in marble, are merely in 
plaster, and one of the staircases is only just commenced. 
It was the King's intention to build a theatre on to the 
Palace, an idea, however, which he never lived to carry 
out. Strange to say, the Palace is built in such a man- 
ner that the view looks out from the front window upon 
the gardens and park, which are imitated from Ver- 
sailles ; it does not look out upon the very charming 
Lake of Chiemsee ; in fact, I do not know of any rooms 
in the Palace from whence you can see the lake — it 
seems to turn away from the lake entirely. The dining- 
room in the Palace contains a trap-door in the centre of 
the room, by means of which the table can descend and 
mount with the dinner laid upon it ready served for the 
King. 

Everything in the Palace reminds one of France — the 
pictures, and even the chairs, which are covered with 
the fleur-de-lis in gold over scarlet or light blue satin ; 
there is nothing whatever to remind one of Germany. 
I have been told that imitation bronzes and things have 
been substituted since the King's death for the very 
valuable bronzes and other articles which were there, 
but that this is not known to the public. The King 
owed for these bronze lustres, etc., such an enormous 

96 



In Paris and Vienna 1879 -1904 

sum of money that they were restored to the makers, 
and were copied exactly in a cheaper metal. I have this 
information direct from the firm who supplied them from 
Vienna at the time the King lived. 

There is a prophecy of Nostradamus which, curiously 
enough, seemed to apply to the year 1886, in which the 
King met with his death, and the Bavarians, who are 
very superstitious, wondered what would happen in that 
year. The prophecy is as follows : " When Good Friday 
falls on St. George's Day, Easter on St. Mark's Day, 
Corpus Christi on St. John's Day, then there are dread- 
ful things to be expected." And in the year 1886 this 
happened precisely. Tout le monde pleurera was the 
end of this gloomy prophecy. It cannot therefore 
be wondered at that the Bavarians were afraid of what 
would happen, and that they expected something dread- 
ful. King Ludwig II was very devoted to art, but other 
gifts he had not. His letters which have been published 
do not show that he was very intellectual, and no say- 
ings or hons mots have been handed down to posterity 
which would be remembered by the people as coming 
from him. He had a marvellous memory, which through 
his promptitude often put other people into difficulty. 
Every one gave him the credit for having this. His 
H 97 



Society Recollections 

fondness for being alone, which many people attributed 
to deceptions in life, came chiefly from a distaste to put 
himself out in the slightest measure. The greatest mis- 
fortune which happened to him was his coming to the 
throne too soon. His strong self-wiU met then with no 
opposition. Notwithstanding this self-will, or perhaps 
precisely on this account, he was not a man of quick 
decisions. To decide anything cost him great battles 
with himself. He was so undecided, particularly in the 
last years, that he wavered to and fro, tUl at last he 
allowed things to decide themselves. The King was 
very unfortunate in the choice of his friends ; many men 
and women of the highest rank were devoted to him, 
but he did not care for them, and he preferred to show 
his favour to others who knew how to flatter him cun- 
ningly, and at the same time to rob him adroitly. 

The influence which the Empress of Austria had upon 
him was not at all favourable, for she had not any idea 
of obligation, nor had he. She did precisely what she 
wished to do. The Empress always told him " that one 
can do everything that one likes." The King was only 
too ready to follow her advice on this subject. " 'Tis a 
great pity that one cannot always do what one wants," 
said the King one day to the chief of his Cabinet. " That 



In Paris and Vienna 1879 -1904 

is not so difficult, Majesty," replied he ; " one must only 
want to do what one can do ! " " Oh, if you take it 
in that way," was the answer of the King. The King 
evidently preferred the advice given to him by his 
cousin the Empress of Austria, His chief of the Cabinet 
was very soon dismissed. His successors in office had 
not much more luck than he had. In the year 1886 
state affairs were conducted in writing, and the officials 
were not allowed to come before the King. All im- 
portant addresses were delivered to him by his confidant 
and servant Karl Hesselschwert. The King oftentimes 
took likes and dislikes to people from their outward 
appearance. When he was to have a new chief of the 
Cabinet, whom he had never seen before, he asked 
Hesselschwert what he was like in appearance, and the 
latter described Dr. Miiller to the King just as he knew 
the King would like him to be in appearance : "A pro- 
file like Schiller, a forehead like Wagner," etc. When 
the King saw Dr, Miiller afterwards he found him not 
at all like the description given by his servant, and he 
was greatly deceived, " What have you told me ? Dr. 
Miiller is neither like Schiller nor Wagner," Hessel- 
schwert was not to be disconcerted in the least, " Yes, 
Majesty/' said he quickly, " I myself am quite sur- 

i.oFa 99 



Society Recollections 

prised too, how the man has changed." This action, 
which was really a great impertinence on his part, did 
not make the King at all angry ; he laughed at the 
readiness of tongue of his servant, and related the anec- 
dote himself. The King at this time, on the advice of 
Count Holnstein, dismissed all his former servants, and 
took soldiers from the different chevaux legers regiments 
to replace them, which was a very unfortunate idea, 
and had the worst of consequences. Every one knows 
how awkward a soldier servant is at first, and these 
young boys had to assist the King in his toilette and to 
wait upon him at his meals. Therefore it happened that 
he so often changed his servants. Before big dinners 
he always drank several glasses of champagne, " to give 
himself courage," as he said. He never was a big 
drinker, and did not like beer as his country-people do. 
In the month of April, 1880, as Grand Master of the 
Order of St. George, he went through the ceremony. All 
the princes had assembled awaiting him, when suddenly 
it was announced that the King was ill. He had tried 
to overcome his nervousness by taking a long ride, and 
had over-fatigued himself. This ceremony had there- 
fore to be put off for some days. It was then for the last 
time that his courtiers and people saw him walk through 

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In Paris and Vienna 1879 -1904 

the court of the Residence in his gorgeous costume. 
Men even exclaimed on seeing him how handsome he 
looked. At Hohenschwangau he was often seen at the 
hour of his dinner giving bread and sugar on a plate 
to his favourite horse Reif. He used to give his 
servants Schiller's plays to read, and questioned them 
afterwards which play they liked the best. In the year 
1886 the coiffeur Hoppe related that the King said to 
him : " Yesterday as I was driving out I met a man, 
who looked at me so strangely, as if he were going to 
ask me to pay a bill. I thought even that he was going 
to seize my horses for debt." With reference to Munich, 
he said : " Eight white elephants will not drag me 
there." When Hoppe burst out laughing at this, the 
King said : " How good it does one to hear some one 
laugh so heartily." 

The King was immensely fond of children, and always 
preferred them to grown-up people, in which he certainly 
showed his good sense ; but those who later on wished 
to give some proof of his madness said that this fact 
alone was enough to show that he was not sane — they 
clutched at the slightest incident to carry out their 
villainous plot. The King had given orders that his 
palace should not be visited, and yet his servants used 



Society Recollections 

constantly to admit visitors without the King's know- 
ledge. Lilies of the valley were the King's favourite 
flowers. He never could have enough of them in summer ; 
some used to be sent to him from Hamburg several 
months before the usual time of their appearance. They 
were sent by a lady who wished to remain unknown ; 
it was enough for her to know that the King derived 
pleasure from these flowers. The King used to repay 
every little offering magnificently, but in this case he 
could do nothing at all. He tried to find out from the 
chief of his Cabinet, Ziegler, who the lady was ; and 
Ziegler told him that she did not require any return for 
her present. The King regretted that he could not thank 
her, and kept his word to Ziegler by not letting her know 
that he was aware who sent him the flowers. He always 
looked forward with pleasure to these lilies from Ham- 
burg, and when they came a day or two late he was 
most anxious about them. When they arrived he ex- 
claimed quite happily, " Oh, at last ! " This fondness 
for the lily had its reason in that it was the flower of the 
Bourbons and of the much-regretted Marie Antoinette, 
whom he greatly admired. He always wore a medallion 
round his neck, which contained the leaf of a lily. Even 
at his death one was found on his person. No one ever 




LUDWIG II OF BAVARIA 



[ To /ace page 102 



In Paris and Vienna 1879 -1904 

knew afterwards what became of this medaUion. The 
HHes he received from Hamburg he said were the most 
beautiful that he had ever seen ; they were placed in 
high vases on both sides of his writing-table, and he 
never parted with them until they were faded. When 
he went to meet his death from Neuschwanstein he said : 
" I send the lady thanks for her trueness to me. For 
her attention I was never allowed to thank her." 

King Ludwig II never had a profound affection for 
any woman, not even for his fiancee, the Princess Sophie 
of Bavaria. The people did not care much at the time 
for the match, and no one was sorry when it was 
broken off. The King found out quite by chance that 
she was in love with the photographer of the Court, 
Hanfstangl, and had very good reasons to break off the 
marriage, which would probably have been an unhappy 
one. He was very fond of the Empress of Russia, and 
his affection for the Empress of Austria, the sister of his 
bride, was more because they had much the same nature 
than anything else. The Empress of Austria used often 
to advance him large sums of money when he wanted 
any. He once said : " I do not know why the Empress 
always tells me so much about her Valerie — that she 
would like to see me, but I don't care to see her." Un- 

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Society Recollections 

doubtedly he feared some plan of marriage with the 
Empress' daughter, Valerie. The chief of the Cabinet 
always maintained that the King was not ill, but that 
he had extremely sensitive nerves. That Ziegler had 
to speak with the King behind a screen is altogether 
false. The King had a great dislike for the Crown Prince 
of Germany, because, after he had taken leave at the 
station of Bamberg of some Bavarian officers, he said : 
" Well, in ten years you will belong to us." This was 
after the war of 1870. This speech was reported to the 
King, who flew at once into a great rage. Prince Hohen- 
lohe was designated to make clear the fact, by asking 
the Crown Prince personally what he meant by it. The 
Crown Prince replied : " That he only meant naturally 
that the army would be joined to that of the German 
army." But the King was not at all satisfied with this 
reply. " I won't belong to Prussia even in a military 
sense," and when Ziegler tried to modify matters he got 
as an answer : " What do you want more ? Hohenlohe 
has confirmed it." The King constantly suffered from 
headaches and toothache, and, notwithstanding his 
herculean strength, his health was feeble ; probably it 
was rendered so by his mode of life. He was a large 
eater, but his digestion was not good ; he was passion- 

104 



In Paris and Vienna 1879-1904 

ately fond of riding, but was obliged to give it up owing 
to his health. 

On the 2nd of June, 1886, the King arrived at Hohen- 
schwangau, and occupied the rooms in the new castle. 
The doctor who has written a pamphlet on the King's 
last days saw the King five times during his sojourn 
there ; the last time being on the 7th of June. On the 
day before the 6th of June a beautiful basket of Marechal 
Niel roses arrived for him. The King showed the flowers 
to his servants. " Look," said he, " the flowers delight 

me ; they come from " and he named the lady. 

This was the last pleasure which he had ; they were 
the last flowers which were received by him ; the next 
basket of flowers were laid eight days later on his 
tomb. 

The doctor was awakened on the evening of the 9th of 
June by a lady, who told him : " They have come from 
Munich with doctors and keepers to seize the King and 
bring him to the Lindenhof. They have sent away his 
carriage and his people." The doctor says he remained 
for a moment speechless. 

" Does he know what is going to happen to him ? " 
said he finally. " Have the doctors examined him ? 
Does he agree to place himself in their hands ? " 

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Society Recollections 

" No," answered she, " he knows nothing. They 
intend to surprise him and take him away by force." 

" Who is down below ? " said the doctor. 

" Only one of the men at court and my brother," was 
the reply. 

"Go to the Palace ; in a few moments I will follow 
you," said the doctor. 

He dressed hastily, and found the King's coachman 
downstairs weeping, and said to him : " Something 
must happen, I will try, anyhow, if I cannot get into the 
castle to warn Mayr." 

The doctor met on the way several people who belonged 
to the King, who burst into tears. He asked one of 
them to accompany him, as he knew all the ins and 
outs of the Palace. " Impossible," was the reply, " we 
should be at once arrested." 

" Well," said the doctor, " then we shall be arrested; 
that is not the worst thing that can happen to us." 

At last he found some one who had the necessary 
courage. When they arrived at the castle the whole 
place was filled with gendarmes, who refused to let any 
one pass. Every one waited to see what turn things 
would take ; the men of the commission did not appear 
to know what to do ; the gendarmes stood motionless. 

1 06 



In Paris and Vienna 1879 -1904 

Half an hour passed thus. The doctor approached the 
Serjeant, Heinz : " Is His Majesty warned ? " whispered 
he to him. 

" His Majesty knows everything, and we let no one 
in ; the whole fire-brigade is coming to help us." 

The commission had at last to drive away, and with 
them the carriage which they had destined for the King. 
The doctor met the coachman, Osterholzer. " The 
King is having the castle put in a state of siege," said 
some one, " who can have warned him ? " 

" I did it," replied Osterholzer ; " I saw him at two 
o'clock and told him." 

Osterholzer was then overwhelmed with questions. 
Osterholzer had begged the King to flee, informing His 
Majesty that he would procure another carriage for him, 
but the King proudly rejected his offer. " Flee ! why 
should I ? " exclaimed the King. " If there were 
really any immediate danger Karl would have written 
to me." 

Karl was one of his servants whom the King had great 
confidence in, but who was the cause of the trouble, 
having sold his master like Judas betrayed Christ. It 
appears that the King of Bavaria was trying to effect a 
loan from the Orleans family, on condition that if a war 

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Society Recollections 

took place between Germany and France, Bavaria 
would remain neutral during the war ; and Karl Hessel- 
schwert got hold of this letter and delivered it instead 
of to the King to Prince Luitpold, the present Regent 
of Bavaria. 

When the commission tried to enter the castle the 
Serjeant on duty said : "I know only one order, and 
that comes from the King." Then the commission 
wanted to break their way in, but the serjeant seized 
his rifle and said : "Advance one step, and I fire ! " 
The doctor says it is perfectly inconceivable to him in 
what state they must have expected to see the King at 
Munich ; they must have imagined that they had to deal 
with a raging madman, or with a man who was quite 
unconscious of his actions. 

The carriage destined to take off the King was a 
landau, and underneath the seat were small openings, 
in which straps were put to tie the King's feet together ; 
these Osterholzer showed the doctor. When the names 
of those who formed the commission were given to the 
King he got into a violent rage, especially on hearing 
that Count Holnstein was one of them. The magistrate, 
von Fiissen, had orders from the King to arrest them, 
and to take them to the new castle. 

1 08 



In Paris and Vienna 1879- 1904 

At nine o'clock Sonntag arrived at the castle to arrest ^ 
the men who belonged to the commission. They were 
escorted by gendarmes half an hour later. Dr. Gudden 
followed with his assistant doctors. It is not true, as 
was stated afterwards, that they were handcuffed, or 
that the King threatened every one who came near him 
with a revolver. Ludwig II had a great fear of fire-arms, 
like James I of England was known to have. The King 
during the trouble had never taken a revolver in his 
hand, and indeed hardly knew how to use one. Hosnig, 
who during the night drives of the King at first took a 
revolver, had, at the desire of the King, to leave it at 
home. When the commission was being taken away 
a lady said to her daughter, a child of seven years old, 
" When you are grown up you will be able to say you 
have seen traitors." 

Count Holnstein appeared to be the most courageous 
of those forming the commission, for he exclaimed aloud, so 
that the King heard him, " I want my breakfast as soon 
as possible ! " to which remark the King replied, " Shall 
I have the gentlemen served with a glass of wine too ? " 
But the King's anger was always very quickly over ; he 
readily forgot things. At twelve o'clock the King or- 
dered the commission to be set at liberty. They had 

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Society Recollections 

been prisoners for three hours. Count Holnstein had 
been named guardian of the King ; Count Castell, who 
was always named " the pearl of the aristocrats," had 
refused this sad office. Dr. Gudden was the most timid 
of all the commission ; he begged the magistrate to 
accompany him to Fiissen, because he feared the popu- 
lace. The magistrate, Sonntag, gave him a cigar and 
consoled him. Every one thought that the King wanted 
now to go to Munich ; and it would have been the best 
thing that could have happened for his safety ; every 
one who wished him well desired this most heartily. If 
he had done so, and shown himself to his people, matters 
would have ended differently. But the King did not go 
to Munich. Perhaps he did not think that his situation 
was so serious, or it may have been due to his want of 
decision, which so often stood in the way of any wise 
action on his part. He telegraphed to his A.D.C., Count 
Alfred Diirkheim, requesting him to come to him at once. 
The Count arrived at Hohenschwangau at four o'clock, 
and advised the King to leave the castle ; but the King 
said that he had been too much excited within the last 
few hours to leave that same day, and thought of tele- 
graphing to the German Emperor and to Bismarck for 
aid. The telegrams could not go through Bavaria, but 



In Paris and Vienna 1879 -1904 

had to be sent through Tyrol. The King fancied he was 
now safe, but between six and seven a new detachment 
of gendarmes arrived, with orders that if necessary- 
several regiments would be sent from Munich to keep 
order among the people. 

The King issued a proclamation, which was printed 
in the " Bamberger Journal," and was as follows : — 

" I, Ludwig II, King of Bavaria, am obliged to make 
the following proclamation. Prince Luitpold intends 
without my will to proclaim himself Regent of my 
country, and my present ministry has deceived my 
beloved people through false reports in regard to my 
health. The high treason is so sudden that no time 
remains for me to oppose the crime of the ministry. 
If Prince Luitpold maintains the power of government 
without my will, I commission all my friends to combat 
him in every possible way. Should I have no time to 
appeal to the German Emperor for aid, then I trust to 
justice, and further that no one will oppose me when I 
deliver up the traitors in my country to justice. My 
brave and faithful Bavarians will assuredly not abandon 
me, and in case the traitors should use force against me 
and prevent me from maintaining my rights, this pro- 



Society Recollections 

clamation shall be an appeal to every Bavarian to join 
my true party, and to defeat the plans of high treason 
to King and country. 

" Given at Hohenschwangau on 9 June, 1886. 

" LUDWIG II, 
" King of Bavaria, etc. etc." 

Count Diirkheim received two telegrams in the night 
from the Ministry of War that he was to proceed at once 
to Munich. He took no notice of the first telegram, 
but the second he placed before the King. The King 
did not like him to go. " You know how gladly I should 
like to keep you with me," said he. " Telegraph to 
my uncle Luitpold, and say I want you here." The 
Count obeyed, but the answer was not long in coming. 
" You are ordered here by the Ministry of War," and 
Count Diirkheim took leave of his King for ever. 

When the Count arrived in Munich he was at once 
arrested and put into the military prison, but was liber- 
ated some time afterwards. The King found that now 
he was a prisoner. He asked the coiffeur, Hoppe, if he 
could not get him some cyanide of potassium, to which 
Hoppe replied that he could not. The King did not 
think that with the chloroform he possessed he could 



In Paris and Vienna 1879 -1904 

have ended his Hfe more easily. On the nth of June the 
proclamation of the Regent was issued. All the people 
were against it at that time, and plans were formed to 
rescue the King from his captivity. The King had no 
personal means which would have enabled him to live 
in a foreign country, but money was held in readiness 
by others for him if he escaped. 

The King exclaimed to one of his servants, " Only 
imagine that those to whom I have done so much good 
should have betrayed me and delivered all my papers 
and letters to my enemies." He was far from thinking 
that those who were actually around him had done the 
same thing. He now, however, knew that his case was 
hopeless, and that a second commission was coming to 
Neuschwanstein early the next morning with doctors and 
keepers to take him away, and that from that moment 
he would be a helpless prisoner in their hands. He 
walked up and down the throne-room, and asked one of 
his servants, " Do you believe in the immortality of the 
soul ? " The servant said, " Yes." " I believe in it 
too," replied the King. " I believe in the immortality 
of the soul and in the justice of God. I have read a 
good deal about materialism. It does not content one ; 
it is not elevated enough, for man would then rank in 
I 113 



Society Recollections 

the same category with the animal." The King usually 
expressed his ideas aloud, walking up and down. He 
then said : " To be thrown down from the highest 
position in life into a mere nothing — that is a lost exist- 
ence that I will never endure. To take from me my 
crown I could get over, but to be declared mad I shall 
not survive. I could never endure to be treated like 
my brother Otto, whom every keeper orders about and 
threatens with blows when he does not obey." 

The King wanted to throw himself down from the 
tower. " Tell Hoppe, when he comes to do my hair, 
he must look for my head in the PoUat. I hope God 
will forgive me this action." The King felt great bitter- 
ness against his uncle. " A nice relation," said he, 
" who takes the reins of government out of my hands 
and makes me his prisoner. He is no prince regent, but 
a rebellious prince." In Tyrol they had chosen a leader 
and raised an army to liberate the King. Their leader 
was in Hohenschwangau to obtain further information. 
The doctor knew him well and had often been his guest 
in his palace. But on that day he did not dare speak 
to him for fear of betra3dng anything. 

Towards seven o'clock the coi-ffeur, Hoppe, came 
down from the castle. The night was a terrible one — 

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In Paris and Vienna 1879 -1904 

it poured with rain. The King was alone in the castle ; 
the servants, excepting two, were sent away, and the 
castle was locked up. Gudden was waiting for the 
moment when he should take the King away. The 
choice of this doctor was very unfortunate for the King, 
for the King disliked him. He got to know him when 
he treated his brother, but had not spoken to him for 
years. " Gudden looks at me so peculiarly," he said 
once to his mother's mistress of the robes. " I hope he 
does not think there is anything the matter with me too !" 
Gudden decided to send him to Berg ; it was a very 
thoughtless action, to shut him up where he had spent 
the pleasant days of his youth. Berg was more con- 
venient for Gudden to get to his madhouses and to 
Munich. In the middle of the night the King sent for 
his coachman, Osterholzer, believing that he might yet 
attempt flight, but Osterholzer was no longer there. He 
had been threatened with arrest unless he agreed to 
leave Hohenschwangau at once, which he had done. The 
King asked a locksmith if his people would not do any- 
thing to liberate him. The locksmith answered, " The 
people, Majesty, are without arms." To his servant, 
Weber, he gave a brooch in brilliants. " Money I have 
not any," said the King in giving it to him. " If you 

"5 



Society Recollections 

have to give up the brooch, take this order, it is for 
twenty-five thousand marks." " At half -past twelve 
I was born, at half-past twelve I shall die," said he. 

The King had never been a drinker, but during this 
night he mixed brandy and wine together to deaden his 
feelings. In the meanwhile Gudden and the keepers 
had arrived. The King asked for the key to the tower, 
giving Weber a little prayer book, and sa5dng, " Pray 
for me." Mayr, who knew the intention of the King, 
said that the key was not to be found. The King re- 
peated the order, and the servant brought in Gudden 
and the keepers ; and there he announced to the King 
that the door of the tower was open. Gudden advanced 
the first and said : " In the name of the Prince Regent, 
Your Majesty, you are my prisoner ! " The King turned 
towards Gudden and said, " How came you to sign a 
proclamation declaring I was mad ? You had neither 
seen me nor spoken to me beforehand." Gudden replied 
that all arrangements had been made for the welfare of 
His Majesty, and that he would soon recover. The 
keepers put their arms round the King, who pushed 
them aside. " Not necessary, I go of my own accord," 
. he only said. 

The departure from Neuschwanstein took place at 

ii6 



In Paris and Vienna 1 879-1904 

three o'clock. In the carriage he said, " You will allow 
me to take leave of my servant ? " Mayr advanced to 
the carriage. The King had various little commissions 
to give him ; the conversation lasted too long for the 
doctor. " Let us get on," said he. An Austrian re- 
marked to a Bavarian official doctor, " You had no men 
then in your country, that you allowed your King to be 
betrayed and sold ? " 

The journey of the King to Berg took place without 
interruption. Two rooms only were destined for the 
King, and these were arranged as in a madhouse. The 
windows had locks and bolts, in the corners were cup- 
boards, and the doors had holes bored in them, to enable 
the watchers to observe the King. The King's dining- 
room was given to a doctor to live in. The King observed 
the changes in his rooms without sa5ang anything. He 
obeyed the doctors in going to bed early that evening, 
but he was so unaccustomed to it that he awoke at two 
in the morning, and wanted to get up. The keepers 
would not let him, and had taken his clothes away. 
The King's restlessness was not to be overcome. At 
last one of the keepers gave him his socks. The King 
walked up and down in his bedroom in his night-shirt 
for hours. Whit-Sunday was the next day. The King 

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Society Recollections 

wished to attend Mass, but they refused to allow him 
to do so. It was feared that the people might see that 
he was not ill really. At midday he wished to eat an 
orange. They brought him one, but without a knife to 
cut it. He sent it back untouched. Dinner took place 
at four, and the King dined alone. Before he touched 
anything he asked if Gudden had touched any of the 
food or wine. They said " No." The King thought that 
something might be added to his food, in order to put 
him in an unconscious state, and show him to the people 
to prove that they were in the right. Zander was 
allowed to see the King at his request. " Do you think," 
said the King, " that they will keep me for a year a 
prisoner like this ? " 

Zander tried to quiet him, and said that he thought 
he would be set at liberty much sooner. 

" Do you think it really ? " asked the King. " Vappe- 
tit vient en mangeant. My uncle Luitpold will get used 
to governing, and like it so much that he will never let 
me out again." 

Zander did not answer. The King changed the con- 
versation, and asked : " How many gendarmes are in 
the park to watch me ? " -. 

" Six or eight, Majesty." 

iti8 



In Paris and Vienna 1879- 1904 

" Would they shoot at me, if necessary ? " continued 
the King. 

" How can Majesty think of such a thing ? " replied 
Zander. 

" Are their rifles loaded ? " 

" No, they are not loaded." 

The King wished to tell him something in secret, but 
Zander had promised Gudden not to talk to him about 
escaping, so he begged the King to let him go. The 
King looked very much annoyed, but did not say any- 
thing. A quarter of an hour later he took that last 
walk with Gudden. Zander was asked if the King 
showed great antipathy to Gudden. " No," replied 
Zander ; "on the contrary, he was very charming to- 
wards him." But he never accepted any service from 
him. When Gudden in the morning wanted to take a 
wet umbrella from him after they had returned to the 
castle, he did not allow him to do so, but carried it to 
the place himself. 

Zander related how he had not slept during the last 
nights at all, and when Gudden had gone out for a walk 
with the King in the park he thought he would have 
some sleep. The supper was ordered for eight o'clock. 
He lay down with his clothes on, and slept heavily, but 

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Society Recollections 

was awakened by some one shaking him. Some of the 
people at the castle said that the King and Gudden had 
not returned, and it was late at night ; that they had 
looked everywhere without being able to find them. 
Zander got up and dressed, and searched with them. It 
was half-past nine o'clock. They looked everywhere in 
vain. Zander thought at last that some one had locked 
up Gudden somewhere, and taken off the King in a 
carriage and driven him to Munich. His reason for 
thinking this was that one of the grooms had told him 
that there was the trace of carriage wheels as far as 
Seeleiten. " Whom did you think of ? " asked Zander. 
He named the name of a prince. The doctor nodded 
in assent. Later on in the night, however, they found 
the two bodies. Whether the King tried to escape or 
to drown himself is not proved. On the other side of 
the lake was the Empress of Austria and a well-known 
prince with an army ready to help him to flight. But 
it did not succeed. The next day the sad news was 
known. King Ludwig was no more. The prophecy of 
Nostradamus had come true : Tout le monde pleuraif. 

Of all the numerous accounts of the King of Bavaria's 
arrest and subsequent end, this one I have given is the 
only correct one, and it comes from an eyewitness ; the 

1 20 



In Paris and Vienna 1879 -1904 

doctor was a well-known personality, having practised 
as a physician at Frankfort for many years before he 
came to the King of Bavaria, It was not until 1903 — 
two and a half years after the death of the doctor — 
that his account was made public. As most of the 
people who are here mentioned have ceased to exist, 
it is considered that there can hardly be any indiscretion 
in making the matter public. The last actions of a 
King, and especially his words, belong to history, and 
the facts, as I have said before, rest on the strictest 
veracity. 

I cannot help thinking that there is some similarity 
between Ludwig II and Charles II. Of the latter it was 
said that " he never did a wise thing and never said a 
foolish one." The same opinion might apply to Lud- 
wig II, who certainly never did a wise thing for himself, 
although he may have done so for others. There can be 
no doubt that he was the making of Wagner. What 
would Wagner have been had it not been for the King of 
Bavaria ? It was not until the King of Bavaria had 
supplied him with the necessary funds and given him 
his protection, that Wagner was able to build the theatre 
at Bayreuth, and to have his " Nibelungen Ring " and 
" Parsifal " performed ; moreover, when Wagner was 



Society Recollections 

presented to the King he was most unpopular with the 
Emperor of Germany, and his works were not allowed 
to be performed in certain towns in Germany. He had 
taken part in the rebellion, and was still looked upon as 
a red Republican. To Wagner the King was a guardian 
angel. 



122 



CHAPTER VI 

BERCHTESGADEN AND REICHENHALL 

WHY I have written about Ludwig II is be- 
cause all English people staying in Bavaria, 
wherever they may go in the Highlands, are at once 
reminded of him in some way or another. For instance, 
at Berchtesgaden, where I was sta5^ng this summer, 
there is the King's viUa ; then close by are his mag- 
nificent palaces, which so many Americans visit. I 
cannot say that I met any English visiting them though, 
when I went. But at Berchtesgaden there is an English 
church, and, what is more, an English chaplain all the 
summer, so I conclude that the English who go there 
don't leave the country without seeing the sights worthy 
of being seen, if they be at all enterprising. Herren- 
chiemsee is easier to get at from ReichenhaU than from 
Munich. Neuschwanstein and Lindenhof, on the con- 
trary, are easier to see from Munich, For those who 
have little time at their disposal, I should recommend a 
visit to Herrenchiemsee, which is by far the most splen- 

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Society Recollections 

did of the palaces, and is very easy to get to and back 
in the same day from Reichenhall, which last place is 
quite famous for the treatment of lung troubles. I 
myself had been suffering from a severe cold on both 
lungs from October until July, but after going through 
a course of inhalation at Reichenhall I was completely 
cured in the space of a few weeks. The system of in- 
halation applied there is unique, and people come from 
all parts of the Continent and from America to undergo 
the treatment, but, strangely enough, they do not come 
from England, although there are so many consumptive 
people in England. I am perfectly convinced that if 
people were to give it a trial in the early stages of con- 
sumption they might effect a complete cure. 

A great quantity of Dutch, Russians, and Poles, and 
also of North Germans and Americans, go there in the 
season, which lasts during the summer and autumn 
months. The drives round Reichenhall are unsurpassed 
in beauty, for the mountains, covered with snow even in 
summer, are within easy range of the place. Berchtes- 
gaden, which is one hour by rail from Reichenhall, is a 
favourite place with English people, probably because 
it lies higher, though the climate is very treacherous. 
In July we often had the thermometer so low that we 

124 



In Paris and Vienna 1879 -1904 

were obliged to have fires throughout the hotel. There 
are two very good hotels at Berchtesgaden, the Bellevue 
and the Wittelsbach, the latter being much cheaper and 
equally good, though we stayed at the former, which has 
a splendid view from the terrace and a nice garden. At 
Reichenhall there are two or three first-class hotels. It 
is usual to stay in one of the numerous villas if one's 
visit is of any length, as one can obtain the full pension 
at so many marks a day, inclusive of the room, at a much 
cheaper rate (and equally good) than at an hotel. From 
Berchtesgaden there is a very charming walk through 
the woods, of about eight miles altogether, to the Konig- 
see, which is considered to be the most beautiful lake in 
Bavaria, and is visited by about sixty thousand people 
in the year. We walked there with the English chap- 
lain at Berchtesgaden, who was a most amusing man 
and entertained us the whole way, otherwise I don't 
think I could have walked so far. We met some Bavarian 
women, and the chaplain exclaimed that they were so 
robust that they were more like cattle than humans, and 
that they were so ugly that he wondered they ever 
found men to marry them. When we arrived at the lake 
it rained as it usually does, and it naturally spoilt the 
view, and made the lake appear more melancholy than 

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Society Recollections 

it would have done otherwise, though the Konigsee 
always has a sombre appearance. It is surrounded by 
barren rocks of an immense height, and the sun, when 
there is one, does not penetrate to portions of the lake. 
It is usual for visitors to be punted in a large boat across 
the lake and back, an exercise which usually takes one 
hour ; but we had not this pleasure, if pleasure it be, 
as it rained without cease. We therefore returned in a 
char-a-banc to Berchtesgaden, but the way we drove 
was not nearly so interesting as the walk through the 
woods to the Konigsee ; but this particular way is for 
pedestrians only, and cannot be used by carriages. The 
chaplain, who was a good climber, said that before he 
returned to Leamington he must certainly have a try 
at climbing the principal mountain, the Wattsmann, 
which can be seen from Berchtesgaden when it is not 
cloudy and does not rain. But these two things occur 
very frequently unfortunately. The Wattsmann is 
always covered with snow at its summit all the year 
round, and it affords a delightful view from Berchtes- 
gaden, especially on a very hot summer's day. 

The numerous religious processions in the early morn- 
ing, and the continuous ringing of bells, quite bewildered 
our chaplain, who could not make it out. He said that 

126 



In Paris and Vienna 1 879-1904 

at first it troubled his rest considerably, but finally he 
got used to it. One morning he told me he had received 
a summons for having placed a printed notice about the 
English church on the wall of the King of Bavaria's 
villa. To his great amazement he received this sum- 
mons. I never heard how it ended, but I fancy he 
/merely had to pay a fine of some few marks. Berchtes- 
gaden is situated at the top of a great incline in the 
mountains ; therefore the walks are all either up hill or 
down ; there is but one walk which is partly on level 
ground, and that is the walk to the Konigsee I have 
already alluded to. There were two or three English 
families staying at the Hotel Bellevue, with whom I made 
acquaintance — a clergyman and his sister who came from 
the West of England. We found that we had many 
acquaintances in common in England, one being the 
Baroness de Tanteignies, whom I knew as a young girl 
in Ostend. The Baroness hunts with the Devon and 
Somerset Staghounds every winter, and usually lives at 
Lady Lovelace's seat when in that part of the country. 

Reichenhall is situated on level ground, and is sur- 
rounded by mountains, and is therefore much more 
protected from the winds ; in fact, I have never known 
there to be a wind at Reichenhall, hence it is so much 

127 



Society Recollections 

recommended for consumptive people. In the garden 
belonging to the Kurhaus there is what is called a 
Gradirhaus, which is a large construction of wood, in 
which there are small branches of pine trees arranged 
systematically, and over these branches water trickles 
continually, so that the perfume emanating from the 
pine trees penetrates the atmosphere and renders it de- 
lightful. But one is told on a very hot day, and if one 
is very hot, not to approach too near the Gradirhaus, 
for one may easily take a violent cold, it is always so 
cool and refreshing there. Many people sit opposite it 
and read in the morning, and breathe the air coming 
from the pine trees, which is beneficial for the lungs. 

We were staying at the Villa Burkhert in ReichenhaU, 
which used to be a dependance of the first hotel, the 
Hotel Burkhert, and has a delightful garden joining that 
of the Kurhaus. The Villa Burkhert is most comfort- 
able, and the cuisine is very good for South Germany. 
The meals are taken together at one table, which has 
its advantages ; you may make acquaintances or know 
no one in the place, just as you like. The dinner takes 
place at one o'clock, as is usual in Germany, supper 
between seven and nine o'clock, and breakfast is served 
in the bedrooms. The daughter of the owner of the 

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In Paris and Vienna 1879 -1904 

villa, Miss Burkhert, speaks English well ; she is a first- 
class horsewoman ; she has some very good horses, and 
quite the smartest traps in Reichenhall, which can be 
obtained on hire. 

One of the prettiest drives is to the lake of Thun ; 
there is a small restaurant on the lake where one can 
take tea or coffee, or a light meal consisting of trout, 
which are caught in the lake. Some of the people stay- 
ing at Villa Burkhert used to think nothing of walking 
to the lake and back of an afternoon, but it is necessary 
to be a good walker for that, as there is considerable 
uphill walking. Occasionally you can see a chamois on 
the top of the rocks near the lake, but these animals 
keep extremely high up, and are very difficult to distin- 
guish unless one has a field-glass with one. Among the 
people staying at Reichenhall there was an Austrian lady 
and her two daughters. We drove with them to the 
Mauthaiisel, which is a delightful drive and further off 
than the lake of Thun, and the scenery is much grander. 
You can also see the Wattsmann mountain in the dis- 
tance. The drive is uphill all the way. There is a 
restaurant at Mauthaiisel situated among very grand 
scenery. We took coffee there, as the horses had to 
rest. On driving back another route we had to go down 
K 129 



Society Recollections 

a hill which was almost perpendicular, and for any one 
suffering from giddiness it is certainly quite a torture. 
It is marvellous how the horses can go down it at all, 
but the coachman leads them so slowly, and they are so 
accustomed to it, that they rarely if ever trip. 

The two young girls we went with were both very 
charming ; the eldest had received from the Shah of 
Persia during his last stay in Austria a most magnificent 
marquise ring in brilliants, in the centre of which was a 
large turquoise. It happened that she was one of the 
few ladies who could speak to him in French while he 
was on a visit to the Prince of Issenburg-Birstein, and 
before he left he made her this present. She amused me 
by relating how eager the Shah was to have some wild 
duck and wood-pigeon shooting, but as the Prince of 
Issenburg-Birstein had none on his property, the tame 
ducks and pigeons which could be obtained round about 
were painted for the occasion, and the Shah, quite in 
the dark as to what had taken place, received just as 
much pleasure as if it had been the real thing. A prin- 
cess who took part in the shooting said aloud, forgetting 
that one of the suite spoke German : " Der alter Esel 
schcini nichts hemerkt zu haben von mass vor kommt." 
The Prince had very good shooting on his property, but 

130 



In Paris and Vienna 1879 -1904 

not of the kind to tempt the Shah, as chamois shooting 
was involved in too much difficulty to tempt him, and 
the Auerhahn demanded too much exertion for a sports- 
man like the Shah to dream of. The younger daughter 
of the Austrian lady was an extremely pretty girl of 
fifteen whose Christian name was Landi. She spoke 
English very well. I often took long walks with her at 
Reichenhall. One day she was suddenly taken ill (she 
suffered from her heart), and one of the Princes of Issen- 
burg-Birstein came from Germany to see her. He was 
very much devoted to her and she to him. The Prince 
is a nephew of the Emperor of Austria, his mother being 
an Archduchess of Austria and a sister of the Emperor. 
This lady and her daughters were staying in a private 
villa at Reichenhall. One morning the younger daughter 
told me of the sudden death of Labitzky at Reichenhall, 
which had just occurred. I was extremely grieved, as 
I knew him well from Karlsbad, where he often con- 
ducted some music of mine at his famous concerts. 
Labitzky once said at Karlsbad in my presence that he 
was for years the conductor of Queen Victoria's private 
band, and that he had never seen such beautiful women 
as were at the Court balls given by the Queen, not in 
Vienna nor in Warsaw, nor in fact anywhere. He said 

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Society Recollections 

that they had something so dehcate and distinguished 
about them, and had such magnificent shoulders that 
he would certainly give them the palm for beauty. 
Labitzky, it is needless to relate, was a celebrated com- 
poser as well as an excellent conductor of orchestra, and 
lived for years at Karlsbad, where he was the making 
of the orchestra there ; there are few orchestras in 
Europe to equal it for excellence. 

A Prussian officer named Kaussen was staying at the 
Villa Burkhert with his wife. He had one of the largest 
silk manufactories in Prussia at Crefeld, and had been 
round the world. He found fault with a great deal at 
Reichenhall ; it was too near Austria ; they tried to 
rob one in the same way as the Austrians did ; he always 
informed them that they were under German law and 
not under Austrian, and he usually got the best of them 
in the end. I told him the case of a lady who had re- 
ceived a bill of nearly one hundred pounds for thirty 
visits at a dentist's in Vienna. To which he repHed : 
" What can you expect from such a nation ? It is too 
near Roumania, and Croatia, which is a part of Austria, 
is barely civilized." He called the inhabitants of those 
countries halbmenschen, which means " half " human 
beings. I related to him a curious incident which hap- 

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In Paris and Vienna 1879 -1904 

pened to me in Reichenhall. While going to the Hotel 
Axelmanstein one day I spoke to a young lady of seven- 
teen, who looked older but was very good-looking in- 
deed. She told me she was a Roumanian; when she 
asked me if I happened to know any of her country- 
people, I said that I had only met a lady in Vienna 
called Mitza Michelaexo, a beauty of renown, who was 
much talked about as having nearly ruined a young 
prince of Roumania, and then had her debts paid by 
Baron Wassilko, a Roumanian. She started at the 
name, and said : " It cannot be so, for he is my uncle. 
Mamma is coming in directly, and I will ask her," and 
to my annoyance the mother came in and I was intro- 
duced. She said she knew nothing about her brother's 
actions, which quieted me much, particularly as I knew 
what I had said was true, but I had no idea they were 
related to him. When telling the Prussian officer this 
story he said : " What does it matter, for they are only 
halhmenschen ? If they had been of another nation- 
ality it would have been unpleasant." 

This officer had been to Vienna, but said he would 
not live there for anything, as he did not like the people. 
They were so corrupt, and he much preferred northern 
countries. I don't think he cared for England, as he 

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Society Recollections 

told me that he made a sea voyage, and a Governor of 
one of our Colonies happened to be on the ship. On his 
birthday the Governor had a bottle of champagne placed 
before every one on board at dinner, in order that they 
might drink his health. The Prussian officer saw the 
bottle of champagne and asked what it meant, and when 
they told him he directed the waiter to take it away. 
He said that if he wanted to drink champagne he could 
order it himself. He told me that he thought it rather 
impertinent of the English Governor to offer him cham- 
pagne, without asking him beforehand if he could do so. 
I managed to get on very well with him ; in fact, I was 
more with him than with any of the other visitors, and 
when he took photographs of the people staying there 
he asked me to assist him in some way or other ; and 
on leaving Reichenhall he and his wife made me a present 
of some German books. 

An Austrian lieutenant of the Lancers and his wife 
came later on to our villa. I am quite sure if he had 
met the Prussian officer they would have ended by quarrel- 
ling. He was down on everything that was German ; 
he abused the Prussian army, and said — and I agree — 
that it is very much overrated. He attributed the 
Prussian victory over the Austrians in 1866 entirely to 

134 



In Paris and Vienna 1 879-1 904 

the incapacity of the Austrian generals, especially Count y 
Clam Gallas, who was intoxicated the day of the deciding '' \ 
battle at Koniggratz. General Benedek was a good 
general, but not equal to the command over so many 
troops, and he had in vain begged the Emperor to replace 
him. The Prussians had great luck and first-rate generals, 
such as Moltke and Prince Frederick Charles of Prussia. 
Then, with regard to the Franco-German war, the Ger- 
mans had again great luck, and the French very in- 
competent generals. As Napoleon once said, and it is 
very true : " A la guerre c'est I'hom^ne qui commande qui 
est tout, I'armee ce n'est rien.'" 

With regard to the Austrian cavalry there can be 
no doubt, as the Austrian lieutenant said, that it 
is, and always has been, superior to the German 
cavalry. The Russian cavalry is good, and is as 
numerous as the Austrian and German cavalry put 
together. 

The Austrian lieutenant complained much of the im- 
politeness of the Germans compared with the Austrians ; 
he said even the cab-drivers in Germany speak to one in 
the second person plural, whereas in Austria they address 
one in the third person singular. For instance, a cab- 
driver at Reichenhall would say, "Where do you want 

135 



Society Recollections 

to drive to ? " etc., and an Austrian cab-driver at Salz- 
burg, quite close to Reichenhall, only one hour's drive 
from there, would say, "Where does the gracious gentle- 
man desire to drive ? " etc. ; and with servants in 
Germany it is just the same. Servants come into the 
room brusquely, asking one, " What do you want ? " 
instead of the polite manner in which they enter the 
room in Austria, always saying the first thing, " I kiss 
the hand " ; and in good private houses they not only 
say the words, but they perform the action of kissing the 
hand as well. It is much the same with all classes in 
Germany ; they have little or no politeness in their 
nature. It seems strange that the Austrians should 
form such a great contrast to them. In Austria they 
always address a lady in speaking to her as gnddige 
frau (gracious lady), but in Germany this is not at all 
usual ; and then there are many other forms of speech 
which are made use of in Austria but which in Germany 
would seem absurd. The Austrian lieutenant used 
constantly to have arguments with a Prussian lady on 
these and other questions ; and one could plainly see 
that there was little love lost between the two nations. 
It seems strange that the Austrians should consider 
Bavaria as not being Germany. This idea was also 

136 



In Paris and Vienna 1879 -1904 

expressed by a Polish lady at Reichenhall. She told 
me that she hated living in Germany, but that Bavaria 
was not at all the same thing ; that she did not consider 
Bavaria as a part of Germany, but as a separate kingdom, 
which in point of fact is quite true. 



137 



w 



CHAPTER VII 

VIENNA— THE SOCIETY 
HEN I arrived in Vienna for the first time I 



stayed at the Hotel Matschakerhof in the Spiegel- 
gasse, near the Graben. I was recommended to it by 
Captain McCarthy, whom I had met some years before 
at Bonn, on the Rhine, and I found the hotel rather dark, 
but otherwise very comfortable. I was very curious 
to know the origin of the name of the hotel, and a story 
was told me about it which I tell in the way it was re- 
lated to me. In the long ago two men were digging 
a pit, and at the bottom they found a large iron case, 
and on opening the case they found inside it a mat- 
schaker. Naturally I asked the question, as everybody 
would on hearing this story, "And what is a matschaker?" 
to which the person who related the story said, " That 
is just it, what is a matschaker ? Nobody knows or 
ever heard of such a thing." It made me laugh. Of 
course I thought the person was going to give me some 
serious information about the origin of the name of the 
hotel. 

138 



In Paris and Vienna 1879 -1904 

My jfirst impression of Vienna was that it was like no 
other place I had ever visited. It was not like Paris, 
nor was it like any German town. The streets were 
inches deep in snow and the roofs of the houses were 
quite white ; and they remained so during the winter 
months I was there. I noticed that every house had 
double windows, and that the houses were remarkably 
high, somewhat like those of Paris ; but the streets were 
extremely narrow at that time. Since then they have 
been nearly all of them widened. I took a walk the first 
day, and after walking for about an hour thought to 
myself that I must be a very long way from my hotel, 
when, to my great surprise, I found I was nearly at the 
spot from whence I had started. I easily accounted 
for this afterwards because Vienna is constructed more 
or less in a circle, and I was not accustomed to walk 
much in the snow, whose white covering gave the streets 
a somewhat similar appearance. One day I walked in 
the snow to the famous Prater, but I found myself up 
nearly to my knees in snow, so I thought it was time to 
turn round and go home, which I did, not taking with me 
a very favourable opinion of the Prater. I thought the 
people got up extremely early in Vienna, compared to 
Paris and London, for at seven o'clock everybody seemed 

139 



Society Recollections 

up and about. The shops are open before eight o'clock, 
which amazed me, especially as it was intensely cold ; 
but at eight o'clock of an evening the shops are closed, 
and at ten o'clock there was not a soul to be seen in the 
streets ; in fact, everybody appeared to be in bed and 
asleep. 

I had made the acquaintance of a man in the train 
named Neuss, who also had come from Paris, and he 
introduced me to his wife and daughters. I was invited 
to visit them every evening if I cared to go. The daugh- 
ters were wonderful musicians, and played on two grand 
pianos in their drawing-room every evening, chiefly 
compositions of Liszt and Wagner. It was through 
Frau Neuss that I got to know Frau Oppenheim in 
London. This lady was like Adelina Patti, as I have 
mentioned before. The eldest, Fraulein Neuss, stayed 
with Frau Oppenheim in London on a visit, and became 
engaged to a captain in the English army, whom she 
married ; but she died a few months afterwards in child- 
birth. She was a good-looking blonde, and about eighteen 
when she married. The other daughter married Count 
Colloredo Mels, of a very well-known Austrian family ; 
she is immensely rich now, and always spends the winter 
at Nice. 

140 



In Paris and Vienna 1879-1904 

I was delighted with the Ringstrasse, and thought it 
quite equal to, if not prettier than the Boulevards in 
Paris ; but the trees planted there were miserable-look- 
ing ones, and did not seem to prosper in the cold climate. 
The houses on the Ringstrasse are very fine, and quite 
equal in appearance to those in the Champs Elysees, 
viewed from outside ; but inside they are not to be 
compared to them for comfort or luxury. For instance, 
the staircase is of stone, and mostly without any carpet ; 
they are chiefly let in apartments, and there is but one 
staircase ; an escalier de service is a thing quite unknown 
in Vienna. The Graben and the adjoining Kohlmarkt 
is the principal street for elegant shops, and is, so to speak, 
the Bond Street or Rue de la Paix of Vienna, but it is 
on a much smaller scale than Bond Street, being more 
the size of the Rue de la Paix ; but the shops are not 
nearly so fine as in either of the two mentioned streets. 
The Karnthnerstrasse was very narrow indeed in those 
days, but now it is a fine broad street of a great length, 
and might compare with Regent Street, though Regent 
Street is much more imposing ; but the Karnthnerstrasse 
is certainly a very fine street. Of an evening the shops 
look very well, better than any I have seen in Germany, 
and better than most in the streets of London or Paris. 

141 



Society Recollections 

Of an evening, from six to eight o'clock, the Karnthner- 
strasse is thronged with people, so much so that it is 
almost impossible to get along excepting at a snail's 
pace. The people walk there, and on a part of the 
Rings trasse as well, between those hours for pleasure, and 
they call it, as in Italy, the " Corso." The people who 
walk there at this hour are mostly of the well-to-do 
middle class, some officers of line regiments, and 
a great many of the demi-monde ; but it is a nice 
sight to see once in a way, although it often becomes 
fatiguing. 

I can remember seeing on the Ringstrasse at the time 
I am speaking of a lady who gave her arm to a cavalry 
officer. She was quite young and pretty, was dressed in 
a white dress only reaching to her knees, embroidered with 
gold lace, and she wore high boots of red leather, extend- 
ing partly up her legs. Over her shoulder, like the Hussars 
used to wear in England, she wore an attila, white and 
trimmed with very fine fur, and as a hat she wore a czapka, 
or lancer's headdress, of soft white material, bordered with 
fur, the square top being of red stuff, crossed with gold 
lace. I discovered that she was a Polish lady, belonging to 
Austrian Poland, and that she was wearing, as then was 
much the fashion, the Polish national costume. Nowa- 

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In Paris and Vienna 1 879-1 904 

days, I am sorry to say, such picturesque dresses are 
rarely worn, excepting by the Slavonian nurses, who 
wear short petticoats to their knees, much standing 
out, with a lot of petticoats underneath, and with high 
hessian boots ; but their headdress is so ugly — a kind 
of turban, entirely covering the hair. The turban is 
such a disfigurement to the face that it is generally 
difficult to tell whether the wearer be an old woman or 
a young one. The Hungarian peasants also wear a 
costume with short petticoats and high boots, which 
are much more becoming ; but in Vienna one only sees 
this costume either on the stage or at a fancy ball. Occa- 
sionally you see a Hungarian in his national costume, 
but it seldom happens. The Serbs are very fond of 
wearing their national dress in Vienna at times, especially 
the young girls, who wear a small cap of red material, 
embroidered with gold lace, and a bolero jacket in black, 
also embroidered with gold lace, and a short skirt, which 
is very becoming indeed to a pretty girl. The Serbs 
are generally extremely good-looking. The hair, I must 
add, is worn in two long plaits down the back. One 
thing I noticed in Vienna was that children of ten and 
eleven years old wear their hair put up, and not hanging 
down loose, as with us. At first I thought that there 

143 



Society Recollections 

were no children in Vienna, till I at last perceived the 
custom of doing the hair like grown-up women, which 
certainly gives them a much older appearance, until one 
becomes used to it. I am told that their fashion is much 
better for the hair than wearing it loose. It is partly 
the reason why they wear it so. Some of them have 
magnificent long hair, such as you very rarely see in Eng- 
land, and it may be that wearing it loose, hanging down 
the back, is the reason. 

At the time of my first visit to Vienna none of the new 
buildings, such as the Rathhaus, or Hotel de Ville as 
they would call it in Paris, were built. The Rathhaus 
is in quite a new quarter of Vienna, called the Rathhaus 
quarter, and there are blocks of very fine houses close 
to the Rathhaus. The rent of these is very high indeed, 
and they are mostly inhabited by very rich Jews. Oppo- 
site to the Rathhaus is the Hofburg Theatre, which is also 
a new building, and from outside is quite as grand in 
appearance as the Hofopern-Theater. It has perhaps 
a more imposing appearance than the Hofopern-Theater, 
though I personally much prefer the style of the 
latter from outside : moreover the Hofopern-Theater 
is very excellent inside. The old Hofburg Theatre, 
which I went to, adjoined the Hofburg, or Em- 

144 



In Paris and Vienna 1879- 1904 

peror's Palace, and was a very insignificant building 
from the outside, while inside it was small and stuffy 
and quite unpleasant, for even in winter the heat was 
terrific, and there was no ventilation. Of the new build- 
ings in the Rathhaus quarter, which are worthy of 
notice, there are the Courts of Justice, which is a mag- 
nificent building, with a very fine court and an immense 
staircase. The rooms are so numerous there that it is 
quite easy to lose one's way. Then the Houses of Par- 
liament, which are likewise in the Rathhaus quarter, 
are also new ; they are erected in the style of the build- 
ings of ancient Greece, with numerous columns and 
statues. 

The people of Vienna are very proud of these new 
buildings I have mentioned, and say that Paris has no 
such buildings to compare with them. The old Hotel 
de Ville, which was destroyed during the Commune, was 
much in the same style as the Rathhaus, namely the 
Gothic style. Our Houses of Parliament have a much 
grander appearance than those in Vienna, yet there is 
no disputing the fact that the Houses of Parliament, 
which are joined together in Vienna, make a very fine effect 
as a building. The K.K. Hofburg, or Emperor's Palace, 
has been very much added to of late years. The principal 
L 145 



. Society Recollections 

entrance has had two wings built on to it, and there are 

two very magnificent statues in marble, forming two 

fountains, at each side. A portion of the new palace, 

which is of enormous size, has not yet been completed, 

although it was begun before the Empress of Austria 

died. Of the new churches in Vienna the Votiv Kirche 

is the most striking. It is a purely Gothic building of 

very great beauty. It was built to commemorate the 

failure of the attempt on the Emperor's life in 1853 by 

a man who was jealous because the girl he was in love 

with used to go and see the Emperor. Of the other 

remarkable buildings in that part of Vienna is the Museum 

of Pictures, the old gallery and the new. The pictures 

of the old masters when I first went to Vienna were 

exhibited at the Belvedere, which is now the palace of 

the Archduke Franz Ferdinand Este, the heir to the 

throne. The pictures by the old masters are quite one 

of the finest collections in Europe. There is also an 

excellent gallery of pictures of the old masters in the 

palace of the Prince Lichtenstein, which may be seen by 

the public. There is a magnificent statue to Maria 

Theresa outside the Museum of Pictures, which all visitors 

in Vienna at once go to see. But the most beautiful 

statue is the one near the Hofopem-Theater, erected in 

146 



In Paris and Vienna 1 879-1 904 

recent years to Mozart. His attitude is very graceful, 
and it is in beautiful white marble. 

Vienna abounds in lovely statues. In the Stadt Park 
there are several — of Schubert, of Makart, of Bruckner, 
and many others in different parts of the town. The 
most celebrated church in Vienna is that of St. Stephen, 
which was commenced in the year 1300, and is in the 
Gothic style. The spire is 136 yards in height ; it is 
the highest in Europe, with the exception of the one 
in Cologne and that of Strasburg. The Karls Kirche 
is also a magnificent church, where there are fine masses 
given with full orchestra and drums on certain Sundays ; 
the singing is also good, and some of the ladies who sing 
there come from the Hofoper. The Augustiner Kirche 
is famous for the lovely monument to the Archduchess 
Christine, who is represented as a young girl walking 
into her tomb, with her parents standing beside her. 
The monument is one of the chefs-d'ceuvre of Canova. 
This church is noted for the lovely music and singing 
that may be heard there, and it is always very crowded 
on a Sunday. In the vaults of the Augustiner Kirche 
the hearts of the imperial family of Austria are pre- 
served. The Kapuziner Kirche, a small church in the 
centre of the town, contains the bodies of the imperial 

147 



Society Recollections 

family in a large vault underneath the church, which 
can be seen by those who like to see such sights. The 
imperial family often go there. 

One of the principal parks in Vienna is the Stadt Park, 
which is more of a garden than a park. It has a Kur- 
saal and an artificial lake, on which in summer there 
are several swans, ducks, and other large birds. The 
plants and trees growing there are some of them from 
the tropics, and have to be removed during the winter 
months. The garden is very tastefully laid out, and 
there are seats, as in Kensington Gardens, for which you 
have to pay two kreuzers, or about one halfpenny. In 
the winter people skate on the lake when the ice is 
thick enough. Skating is not always allowed, as the lake 
is very deep in parts and there is danger of accidents 
unless the frost be severe. The Volksgarten is another 
park which is more of a garden than a park, but it is 
not so pretty as the Stadt Park. It has a large restau- 
rant at one end, where military concerts are held out 
of doors in the summer, and inside the building in the 
winter. These concerts take place at four o'clock, 
and end about ten o'clock in the evening. They are 
usually very good, as the military bands which play there 
are most excellent. The entrance to the concerts costs 




^ 




In Paris and Vienna 1879- 1904 

thirty kreuzers, or sixpence, on a weekday, and fifty 
kreuzers, or tenpence, on a Sunday. On weekdays they 
are not so crowded as on Sundays. The people who go 
usually take coffee and rolls during the performance, 
and if they stay later than eight o'clock they are ex- 
pected to have supper there too. The people who fre- 
quent these concerts are a better class in the summer- 
time than in the winter months, and the public is usually 
of a better class on a Sunday than on a weekday ; they 
are chiefly people from the well-to-do middle-classes, but 
here and there you see a cavalry officer with his rela- 
tions, though most of the officers who come to these 
concerts are line or artillery officers. When I was on 
my first visit to Vienna I often went on a Sunday and 
f8te-day to these concerts. I think they were better 
attended than they are now, for I remember that it was 
very difficult to obtain a place at all. On the other hand, 
there were then fewer places of amusement than there 
are at the present time. 

The room is one which easily fills with smoke, so that 
the later one arrives the less pleasant it is. There is a 
newly erected monument to Grillparzer, the famous 
Austrian play writer and poet, in the Volksgarten, re- 
presenting, in marble, subjects from his chief plays. It 

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Society Recollections 

is very finely executed. There is a scene from " Der 
Traum ein Leben " (Life's a dream), " Sapho," " Konig 
Ottokar und sein Gliick" (King Ottokar and his good 
fortune), " Der Liebe und des Meeres Wellen " (The 
waves of the sea and of love), and " Die Jiidin von 
Toledo " (The Jewess of Toledo). I forgot to mention 
that in the Stadt Park at the Kursaal during the winter 
only there are military concerts, and these are held only 
on Sundays. The concerts are really promenade con- 
certs, as the building is very large, and there are several 
rooms. Thus the people mostly walk about during the 
music. The public is much the same as at the Volks- 
garten. The miUtary bands which play at the Stadt 
Park and Volksgarten are from the regiments which 
are stationed in Vienna, and number about forty-five to 
fifty men. In the winter months they play with stringed 
instruments, like an ordinary orchestra, with first and 
second violins, violas, contrabasses, etc., a kettledrum, 
but no big drum. It is not at all like the string band 
of an English military band, which consists of two or 
three violins, and the rest flutes, clarinets, hautboys, etc. 
There can be no doubt that the manner in which the 
string band of an Austrian regiment is composed is alto- 
gether more effective than our arrangement, which is 

ISO 



In Paris and Vienna 1879- 1904 

neither one thing nor the other, neither a string band 
nor a brass band. Austria, it is true, is much more 
musical than we are as a nation, and the conductors of 
the military bands in Vienna are mostly well-known 
composers. For instance, Komczak, Ziehrer, Krai were 
military bandmasters, and Lehar, who is the celebrated 
composer of " Der Rastelbinder," was a military con- 
ductor until quite recently. Certainly they earn very 
much more money in Austria than they do in England. 
An Austrian bandmaster in Vienna earns about four 
thousand florins a year, or three hundred and fifty 
pounds ; whereas our military bandmasters have to con- 
tent themselves with a mere pittance in comparison with 
this, though a bandmaster of the Guards can manage 
to make a good deal extra. It is a pity that he does not 
make his band a great deal better than it is, for there 
is not one single military band in Austria which is not far 
and away better than that of our Grenadier Guards band. 
In Austria every regiment has a brass band and also 
a string band, the latter playing indoors in winter, and 
the former playing on parade and when marching out, 
and at concerts out of doors in summer. The Austrian 
military brass band is unrivalled in Europe. It is far 
superior to the German military band ; and it is need- 

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Society Recollections 

less to speak of those of other nations, which are mostly 
inferior to the German military band. The Austrian 
military brass band has always two men playing the 
cymbals, and the big drum is usually carried by a pony 
in marching out, but the big drum does not play the 
prominent part it does with us ; in Austria one hears 
the cymbals above everything else, and not the big 
drum, as is always the case in England. Each com- 
pany in marching has a man who beats the side drum, 
or blows a bugle in rifle regiments, when the band stops 
playing, in order to mark the steps, and he marches at 
the side in the centre of the company. I find this 
arrangement a vast improvement upon ours, for with 
us the big drum is too important an instrument by far. 
Our Artillery string band, which plays at Woolwich 
during mess, I have often heard, and it certainly is the 
best we possess ; but yet it has not such good solo 
players as one hears in an Austrian military string band 
in Vienna. During my first visit to Vienna, Johann 
Strauss used to conduct his orchestra at the Volksgarten 
on certain days, and a great authority then on music, 
Charles Mayer, told me that there was not one single 
military string band in Vienna which was not vastly 
superior to Strauss 's orchestra, and that people went 

152 



In Paris and Vienna 1 879-1 904 

when Strauss 's orchestra played because it was the 
fashion to do so, and to see him conduct with his brother, 
Edward Strauss. 

Johann Strauss could not write for orchestra, but always 
got some one to arrange his music for him. The orches- 
tration he never did himself. Nobody, however, ever dis- 
puted his talent for inventing charming melodies, or that 
he was the best composer of waltzes in the world. I 
once went to the Volksgarten in summer when the band of 
Johann Strauss performed, as well as a military brass band, 
each in turn. I was with some English ladies, one of 
whom was Miss Moncrieff, who afterwards became the 
Marchioness of Bath, and I remember one lady saying : 
" How nice it would be if we could have this sort of 
concert out of doors in town, at the price of a florin, 
like this ; but unfortunately they would have to charge 
a sovereign at least, otherwise it would be so badly 
attended and not at all as in Vienna, where the people 
at this concert seem to be so nice." In the summer 
months people sit at small tables, and it is usual to take 
supper, while the band plays out of doors. It is a new 
arrangement, and formerly was not so much the fashion ; 
but now there are few people who go to these concerts 
who do not have their supper there. 

153 



Society Recollections 

The Augarten is another park in Vienna where a 
military band performs, but the pubhc one sees is very 
common indeed, and the Augarten is by no means a 
favourite park, though the Archduke Otto has his palace 
there. The Emperor's nephew is married to Josepha, 
the sister of the Crown Prince of Saxony, who has been 
talked about so much lately on account of his wife 
leaving him as she did. The lady I knew at Reichenhall 
with her two daughters knew the Crown Princess of 
Saxony as a child, when she was a Princess of Toscana, 
as well as her brother, who calls himself now Wolfding, 
and is no longer an Archduke of Austria. The lady told 
me that they both were most highly intellectual, but 
rather eccentric, and that the brother has given up all 
rights to be an Archduke of Austria, but that he has 
not renounced his right of being one day Grand Duke of 
Toscana, which title no one can take from him. 

Leopold Wolfding, formerly Archduke Leopold of 
Austria, when in Vienna always mixed with the middle 
classes and avoided the aristocracy ; he used to tell 
people to address him as " Herr Graf " (or My Lord), and 
not as " Kaiserhche Hoheit " (Your Imperial Highness). 
He hated all ceremony, and generally appeared in plain 
clothes and not in uniform, unless compelled to do so. 

154 



In Paris and Vienna 1879 -1904 

He was liked in Vienna by the middle classes, but de- 
tested by the aristocracy. The young girl he married, 
Fraulein Adamovics, is, I understand, of a good middle- 
class family, but the girl was very fast indeed before she 
made the acquaintance of the Archduke ; hence the 
reason why the marriage was so disapproved of at Court. 
Her sister is a music-hall singer at Prague, but much 
younger than the wife of the Archduke. 

The Prater is the principal park in Vienna, and answers 
to our Hyde Park or the Bois de Boulogne in Paris ; at 
first I did not like it, having been there in winter when 
it was covered with snow, but since then I have seen it 
in spring and autumn ; the avenue of chestnut trees, 
extending for miles, is one of the most beautiful in the 
world, and of an afternoon in the spring it is the favourite 
drive of the Viennese, who drive up and down generally 
from five till seven or eight o'clock. Very few private 
carriages are to be seen compared with Paris and London, 
mostly fiakers, hired by the month or day. But they 
are very good, and quite equal to the best London 
hansoms, if they do not surpass them. Some fiakers 
have Russian horses, which are exceedingly fast, and 
others have American trotters, which are even faster. 
Of course, there is a great number of horses of the 

155 



Society Recollections 

' country employed too. The flaker is an open carriage in 
summer and a closed one in winter, and has two horses. 
It is very superior to the einspdnner, or cab with one 
horse, which is about or nearly as bad as the Parisian 
cab, and only a degree better than the London " growler." 
In the Prater is a tea place called the Kriau, which 
is very fashionable of an afternoon in the spring and 
summer. Here all the smart carriages put up, and the 
people sit out at tables and take their coffee and tea 
there ; it is the rendezvous of the elegant world. At 
the further end of the Prater is the Freudenau, where the 
races take place in the spring, summer, and autumn. At 
the end of the season in June the famous Derby is run 
there, when aU Vienna turns out to go to the races ; 
the elegant costumes of the ladies in Vienna on that 
day is a very fine sight. If it is a fine day they wear 
their gayest costumes ; and a great many carriages drive 
up and down in the Prater merely to witness the return 
home from the races. The racecourse is rather pretty, 
but not equal to Ascot, or even to Longchamps. It is 
not usual to lunch at the races ; people arrive after 
lunch, and only take five-o'clock tea with sandwiches, 
or champagne, which can be obtained at a kind of bar. 
People have no idea of taking their lunch, or indeed 

156 



In Paris and Vienna 1879 -1904 

anything to eat or drink, with them ; it is obtained, 
as I said before, on the racecourse, which does not make 
the meeting nearly so jolly or amusing as in England. 

The Court is generally well represented at the Austrian 
Derby, the Archdukes Franz Ferdinand, Otto, and 
Ferdinand being almost every year there in the royal 
box, or walking about on the lawns. The Princess of 
Auersperg went one year in a very smart turn-out, ac- 
companied by her two daughters, with four horses and 
postilions a la Daumont ; the postilions were dressed in 
light blue silk jackets with silver braid. Last year it 
poured with rain aU the day, therefore there were very 
few smart turn-outs and very few ladies present. The 
Prater has three or four restaurants where military 
bands play during the afternoon and evening in summer ; 
the people can dine out of doors. These places are fre- 
quented by all classes of people. Sacher's Garden is v 
also a famous restaurant in the Prater, which is rather 
an expensive dining place, and from seven to ten o'clock 
of an evening it is filled with members of the aristocracy 
and others. The Archduke Ludwig Victor often dines 
there ; the regular dinner is supplied at prix fixe at 
two florins and a half each person, without wine, and 
remarkably good it is. The dinners are served in the 

IS7 



Society Recollections 

garden, and one can listen to the military band playing 
at the third " Cafe haus " restaurant close by. For the 
last few years there has been a place in the Prater like 
Earl's Court, called " Venice in Vienna," an imitation 
of the buildings in Venice being constructed, including 
the canals, etc. ; and there are all sorts of performances 
going on during the summer months. There is a theatre 
in the open, where operettas are given, and often the 
Archduke Franz Ferdinand attends these performances 
with his brothers Otto and Ferdinand ; latterly the 
Archduke Franz has done so with his wife, the Princess 
Hohenberg, and his suite. Then there are two restau- 
rants, one called the Trianon, which is expensive, as 
dinners are only supplied at prix fixe ; there is another 
restaurant called the Romer Saal, which is quite as good 
and much cheaper, and very much more frequented, as 
almost every one goes there now, excepting those who 
do not mind what they pay for their dinner. The 
Trianon was at first quite a French restaurant, and was 
really good but expensive. 

In these restaurants you can listen to an excellent 
Austrian military band while you are dining. The 
band plays till late at night every evening during 
the summer months. There are also all kinds of 

158 



In Paris and Vienna 1879- 1904 

amusements, just as there are at Earl's Court : the 
switchback, the chute, when most of the occupants 
of the seats in the boat are splashed with water. Then 
there is the large wheel, which is always filled with people, 
and from which you can have a magnificent view of 
Vienna ; the numerous lights in the distance are very 
effective, and quite repay one for going round in the 
wheel. There is also a hippodrome, where any lady may 
have a ride on a horse for a few kreuzers. It is most 
amusing to witness, as most of them have never ridden 
a horse before ; the chances are that they fall off before 
they have finished their ride ; they fall very lightly, 
however, on sawdust when they do fall. The chief amuse- 
ment at " Venice in Vienna " is the throwing of con- 
fetti in the walk they call the " Corso." Hundreds of 
people walk up and down as in carnival time, and throw 
confetti, which is purchased in a bag. The gentlemen 
throw at the ladies, and the ladies at the gentlemen ; 
the latter always throw the confetti at good-looking 
ladies whom they want to make the acquaintance of ; 
and the ladies sometimes return the compliment, or I 
may say mostly do so. This throwing of confetti goes 
on till about midnight and becomes very animated, but 
I have never witnessed a quarrel of any sort arising 

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Society Recollections 

from it, though I have seen both ladies and gentlemen 
with their eyes nearly put out by the little bits of paper, 
and suffering no little pain. Sometimes it takes hours 
to get the little bit of paper out of the eye ; meanwhile 
it is great torture to the sufferer. 

When roses are very plentiful, instead of the confetti 
they employ rose leaves put in a bag, which of course 
costs much more to buy, but is a far nicer amusement 
than throwing bits of coloured paper. Some girls are 
quite proud when they have their hair and clothes 
covered with it, and will not allow one to brush it off 
as they think it shows that they have been very much 
appreciated. The ladies very rarely indeed throw con- 
fetti at each other ; they always single out some man 
they may want to know, or whom they take a fancy to, 
and it is a good way for a lady to get to know a gentle- 
man, or vice versa. 

At the Bohemian watering-places it is more done than 
in Vienna, as it is a good pretext for speaking to people 
you rather take a fancy to. I made the acquaintance 
of Austrian, Russian, and Polish ladies in Bohemia in 
this manner whom otherwise I should never have known, 
although acquaintances are very easily made in Austria. 
People introduce themselves in a most easy manner, and 

1 60 



1 



In Paris and Vienna 1879- 1904 

this is looked upon as quite as good as an introduction 
by any one else, and sometimes it is appreciated even 
more than a formal introduction. The Austrians are 
very gemiithlich, which means not at all stiff, towards 
other people, and unlike the Prussians, who are just the 
reverse. 

The place to go to late of an evening in " Venice in 
Vienna " is the Grinzinger, where some men sing, while 
the audience drinks bottles of wine, beer not being served. 
Sometimes the Archduke Franz Ferdinand goes there 
with his wife, but it is rather a fast place. Some of the 
ladies join even in the chorus, and drink to the health 
of men sitting at other tables. This establishment is 
kept open until three or four in the morning, and is 
often quite fuU at this time ; the men among the audi- 
ence are for the most part of the aristocracy, and the 
ladies are of all sorts and kinds. A great many of the 
demi-monde are present and a good number of actresses, 
besides ladies in high society ; but few of the middle- 
class are seen. " Venice in Vienna " is a late place alto- 
gether, and is somewhat like Cremorne Gardens in 
London used to be, though a good many young girls 
are to be seen. It certainly is not a nice place for a 
young girl to go to, as the atmosphere is decidedly fast ; 
M 161 



Society Recollections 

yet I have seen very nice ladies, and been there with 
young Austrian ladies of the best society in Vienna, 
accompanied by their relations. 

There is another racecourse in the Prater for trotting 
races, at which a good many American trotters take 
part ; but these races, which I have also attended, are 
not very successful, and one seldom sees any ladies 
present ; mostly rich people of the middle class go to 
them. There is a good deal of cheating ; horses being 
pulled is an everyday occurrence there. A man named 
Morrison, a great actor, whom I met at Franzensbad 
afterwards, amused me very much by telling me that at 
these trotting races he always backed the same horses 
as I did by going behind me and seeing what number 
I took at the totalisateur, because he said he knew 
I was acquainted with one of the owners of some race- 
horses which generally won, and that by this means he 
manage i to make a good thing. Last year the auto- 
mobile rat -3 from Paris to Vienna took place, and the 
winning-pos ■: was in the Prater. It was a fearfully hot 
day in July, and it was crowded with the best people. 
The young Frenchman Renault, who was afterwards 
killed in the match from Paris to Madrid, won the race, 
and Comte Zbrowski, who came in third, was killed 

162 



In Paris and Vienna 1879 -1904 

lately in a match in the south of France. This year 
Comte Chamarre, who belonged to an Austrian family 
in Vienna, was killed in coming from Lyons to Vienna ; 
indeed, the automobile seems to be a most disastrous 
invention altogether, and in Vienna they are not at all 
liked. One very rarely sees one, for which I must 
admit I am by no means sorry, for personally I dislike 
them immensely. There are several advocates in Vienna 
of the new dynamic flying machine, and these say that 
it will one day attain importance ; but we cannot con- 
ceive now that we shall be able to fly like the birds high 
up in the air over mountains and valleys, where we like, 
and not where the wind directs us. It will be the real 
poetry of motion, and offer us a pleasure which we 
scarcely even dreamt of. 

There is a portion of the Prater which is only fre- 
quented by ordinary people, and is called the Wurstel 
Prater. In this part there are all sorts of booths and 
shows, and a merry-go-round and similar amusements, 
as at a fair. Sometimes, of course, the upper classes go 
there for fun and to ride on the wooden horses and to 
see the sights. It is similar to the fair at St. Germain, 
near Paris, and something like the Windsor Fair as I 
remember it when at Eton, though I think the Wurstel 

163 



Society Recollections 

Prater is a cut above the Windsor Fair, the latter being 
considered too low for us Eton boys to go to. The 
Rotten Row of Vienna, where men ride, in the Prater, 
is, according to the opinion of an American, the finest 
place of that sort in Europe or America ; but unfortu- 
nately very few riders make use of it, and as to horse- 
women, they can easily be counted on the fingers of one 
hand. I remember a year ago a young girl of fifteen 
created quite a sensation among the Viennese because 
occasionally she herself drove, which, in the opinion of 
the people, is to be very " emancipated," as they call it. 
There used to be the zoological gardens in the Prater 
years ago, but the animals died off, and now there is 
nothing of the sort in Vienna. 

At the commencement of the Prater there is a circus 
which is fairly good ; it is generally open in the winter. 
It comes from Russia, and the owner's name is Baketow, 
though the performers, as in all circuses, are from all 
countries, and change about a good deal. The Austrians 
are not very fond of a circus ; they are more like the 
English in that respect, and not at all Hke the French, 
who adore a circus. The audience is very common, 
apart from the people in the boxes, in Vienna, whereas 
in Paris the cream of society is to be seen in the Cirque 

164 



In Paris and Vienna 1 879-1 904 

d'Ete. The Schwarzenberg garden, belonging to the 
Palais of the Prince Schwarzenberg, is always open to 
the public, and is very pleasant in summer ; it has a 
delightful avenue of trees, and a pond with swans and 
ducks. It is mostly frequented by nursery-maids with 
children, and it makes a very good pla5H[ng ground. The 
Palais itself is one of the finest palaces in Vienna, if not 
the finest, after the Hofburg, the Emperor's palace. 
There are several palaces in Vienna, one on the Schwar- 
zenberg Platz, belonging to the Archduke Ludwig Victor ; 
the Belvedere, where the Archduke Franz Ferdinand 
lives ; the Augarten, where the Archduke Otto resides ; 
the Palais Auersperg, belonging to the Prince Auersperg ; 
the Palais Lichtenstein, which has a fine garden open to 
the public, the property of the Prince Lichtenstein ; the 
Palais of the Prince Salm ; the Palais of the Prince 
Esterhazy ; the Palais of the Prince Kinsky ; the Lobko- 
witz Palais, which is occupied by the French Ambassador ; 
the Palais Metternich, where the Princess Pauline Metter- 
nich resides, and many others. 

There is a fine building on the Ringstrasse called 
Gartenbau, near the Palais of the Prince Coburg-Gotha, 
where there are constant flower-shows. In another 
part of the building a music-hall entertainment takes 

165 



Society Recollections 

place every evening, at which some very second-rate 
performers take part ; but the band of Drescher gene- 
rally plays there, and it is an amusing place to go to 
for supper during a performance. The charge is only 
fifty kreuzers, or one crown in the new money, and the 
audience is not bad ; a great many officers of the cavalry 
go there, as well as ladies of all sorts, of whom some are 
inclined to be fast. The performance is over by eleven 
o'clock usually. Opposite the Gartenbau, on the other 
side of the Ringstrasse, is the Stadt Park, which I have 
mentioned before, and close to it is the Eislaufverein, 
which contains some lawns that are flooded in winter, 
and when there is ice, it is the principal skating place 
in Vienna. One has to become a member to gain ad- 
mission ; the subscription is about thirty florins. There 
is a good military brass band which plays twice a week 
while the people skate ; and certainly both the Austrian 
men and women are beautiful skaters. They waltz very 
nicely on the ice to the band which plays, and some 
very fine figure-skating can be seen there. It is no 
wonder that they skate so well, for the cold is gene- 
rally excessive in winter in Vienna. The Austrians learn 
to skate when they are quite smaU children ; in fact, the 
girls seem to skate better than the boys. Generally once 

166 



In Paris and Vienna 1879 -1904 

or twice during the winter a fancy-dress ball is given 
on the ice. The entrance charge is rather high ; on 
that evening prizes are given for figure-skating. It 
usually begins about eight o'clock of an evening, and 
ends towards the early hours in the morning. I must 
add that there is a well-heated restaurant under cover 
in the principal building, where non-skaters can look on 
if they like. 

The principal club in Vienna is the Jockey Club, which 
is in the Augustinerstrasse, opposite the Albrechtsplatz, 
where the palace of the Archduke Frederick is situated. 
Formerly the latter belonged to the Archduke Albrecht, 
the late Commander-in-Chief of the Austrian army. The 
Jockey Club occupies only the first story of a house in 
the street, but the rooms are very spacious and well 
furnished ; the subscription to the Jockey Club is two 
hundred florins a year, and the requirements for admis- 
sion are that the members be of noble family and have 
money ; the second requirement is much more insisted 
upon than the first. I was informed by Baron Walters- 
kirchen, a member of the Club, that all secretaries of 
foreign embassies are made honorary members, but they 
have to pay the usual monthly payment. There is a 
great deal of high play at cards at the Jockey Club, and 

167 



Society Recollections 

last year M. de Szemere won off Count Potocki at 
baccarat two millions of florins in one evening; the 
matter became known, and they were both of them 
ordered out of Vienna. M. de Szemere appealed, as he 
had race-horses running at the time in Vienna, but he 
lost his appeal ; finally, however, the Emperor allowed 
him to remain on in Vienna. Count Potocki is a young 
man so rich, indeed, that he did not feel the loss of 
the money ; he left Vienna just after he had lost this 
money to M. de Szemere, and met with an accident while 
out shooting near Warsaw, wounding himself so fearfully 
that he injured his spine, and he has been ill ever since. 

King Edward VII on his recent visit to Vienna 
dined with the members of the Jockey Club. 

Another club in Vienna is the Wiener Club, which 
is also a first-rate club, and the members, like those 
of the Jockey Club, have a club box on the grand 
tier at the Hofopern-Theater, which they can go 
to if they wish. There is also a club called the Sport 
Club, which is patronized by members of the aristocracy 
chiefly. The Military Club is not a very famous one ; 
the rooms are very large and fine, but little use seems 
to be made of the club. It is not a dining club at all ; 
the officers occasionally give a fancy-dress ball, to which 

i68 



In Paris and Vienna 1879- 1904 

I have been invited, and at which there is a supper. 
One pays for the supper as at a restaurant, and usually 
the same price ; and merely cold things can be had. 
The Club is called the Officers' Casino. The club for 
millionaires is another club ; it is requisite to be the 
possessor of a million in order to belong to it, though 
I do not think the members, apart from their money, 
have any other distinction ; they are very ordinary 
individuals, ostentatious and nothing else. 

The cafes in Vienna seem to replace the clubs a good 
deal, and members of clubs frequent them as much as 
other men : the cafes take the newspapers, Austrian 
and foreign, and from four till about six o'clock they are 
full of people, both men and women. The principal 
cafes are Cafe Pucher, on the Kohlmarkt, which I think 
is the nicest and the most frequented, though very few 
ladies are to be seen in it excepting on a Sunday, when 
a good many take coffee, chocolate, or tea. The Cafe 
de I'Europe, which is filled with strangers usually, is 
another good cafe opposite the Stephan's Kirche ; the 
Caf6 Schrangl, on the Graben, is another very good cafe, 
frequented by people who live in the neighbourhood, as 
weU as a good many strangers. There are very many 
others ; to enumerate them would be to fill pages, as 

169 



Society Recollections 

in every street there are cafes. The conditorei, or tea 
places, are not nearly so numerous ; there are two 
which are quite celebrated. The aristocracy goes prin- 
cipally to Demel, in the Kohlmarkt. The Princess 
Pauline Metternich used to go there to take her tea at 
five o'clock with friends every day some years ago ; it 
is the best frequented of the tea places. Then there is 
Gerstner, in the Karnthnerstrasse, which is also pretty 
well frequented, but chiefly by the middle classes, 
though some of the aristocracy go there for afternoon 
tea. The other tea places are Reichhardt, on the Wieden, 
at which a good many dancers from the Hof opern-Theater 
go, and Uhl, which is also patronized by the dancers 
of the Hofopern-Theater. The tea places on the Ring- 
strasse are not so good and not so well patronized. 



170 



CHAPTER VIII 

VIENNA— SPORT AND PLAY 

THE Austrians go in a good deal for football, and 
there are several clubs which play a great many 
matches in the year. The best club is called " Austria," 
and the members play every year against a club from 
Prague styled " Slava." They also play against an 
English team, in which game they are invariably beaten. 
The English team has also played in Prague against the 
Slava club, and likewise defeated them. The rules that 
are played are the Rugby rules of football. Cricket is 
altogether ignored in Austria, wherefore I cannot tell, 
as the Austrians seem particularly fond of English sports 
and games. Lawn-tennis is a great deal cultivated in 
Vienna and all over Austria, both men and women play- 
ing it. The best lawn-tennis club is the Wiener Athletic 
Club, in the Prater ; there is also a lawn-tennis club at 
the Eislaufverein, where people skate in the winter 
months ; in the summer months the same lawns are 
used for playing lawn-tennis upon. I cannot say that 

171 



Society Recollections 

the Austrians, either men or women, excel in playing 
lawn-tennis. At the tournament at Homburg those who 
took part were easily beaten by the English. 

The Austrians invariably make use of the English 
terms " play " and " out," and count aloud in English, 
which sometimes sounds very funny indeed, especially 
when the person can only speak but very little English. 
There is also a golf club in Vienna in the Prater, to 
which several English people residing in Vienna belong. 
I do not know whether the Viennese care particularly 
for the game. I have never heard them speak very 
enthusiastically about it, but I fancy it depends a good 
deal on its English members for existence. Polo is not 
at all played in Vienna or in Austria. As the Austrians, 
especially the officers, are very good horsemen, I wonder 
they don't care for it, as they have everything necessary 
to play the game — a good ground and the ponies. 

Fencing is a great deal gone in for in Vienna ; there is 
an excellent fencing-master in Signor Barbasetti, who is 
of Italian origin, and has written a very good treatise 
on " The Sword." I saw him fence against the cele- 
brated Frenchman, Kirchofer, who fences with the left 
hand. Of course he got the better of Barbasetti, just as 
he beats every one else whom he has engaged in fencing. 

172 



In Paris and Vienna 1879- 1904 

Kirchofer is one of the finest fencers, if not the finest, 
in France, and no Austrian could compete with him. 
Lucien Merignac is said to be better than Kirchofer, but 
I should hardly think there could be much difference ; 
but opinions are much divided on this point. 

The restaurants where you dine in Vienna are very 
good indeed, and not nearly so expensive as in Paris or 
London ; the best now is Hopfner, in the Karnthner- 
strasse, but it is better to dine a la carte and not at prix 
fixe, as in Germany ; because no one does so in Austria. 
It comes very much cheaper and is infinitely better. 
Hardtmann's Restaurant, opposite the Grand Hotel on 
the Ringstrasse, is good too, but frequented chiefly by 
Jews ; since the owner had a difference with an officer 
very few officers care to go there now. There is a separate 
room at Hardtmann's, which is more expensive than the 
ordinary dining-room, but is more frequented and more 
comfortable. Dreher's is also a very excellent restau- 
rant, opposite the Hofopern- Theater and very handy 
when one is going to the opera. When I first went to 
Vienna it used to be the best restaurant. It belonged 
then to Dreher, but Dreher made millions with his cele- 
brated beer, and keeps race-hors s instead ; and the 
restaurant belongs to some one else. It is, however, 

173 



Society Recollections 

still very good, and the beer there is excellent. Cause's 
restaurant, opposite the Hotel Tegetthof, is good also, 
and all these restaurants I have mentioned charge 
about the same price. 

The usual hour to dine at the restaurants I have 
named is one o'clock ; suppers or late dinners are served 
from seven to ten o'clock, but later if required. The 
better places are reserved for early dinners and suppers 
rather than late dinners, as most Austrians like to 
dine at one o'clock, and few dine late. When I first 
went to Vienna the best people dined at six o'clock, but 
this custom seems to have been given up, and nearly 
every one dines in the middle of the day. Of late years 
it has been the fashion to have a band playing in the 
winter months from eight o'clock in the evening till 
twelve at night at the Imperial Hotel, the Hotel Bristol, 
and the Grand Hotel, while the people take late dinner 
or supper. The music has attracted many people, and 
at times these hotels are so crowded that it is very 
difficult to obtain a table unless reserved beforehand ; 
nearly everybody takes supper after the opera and the 
theatres, and very often at these hotels. 

The best hotel for dining at is the Imperial Hotel, 
which has a French chef and an excellent cuisine. The 

174 



In Paris and Vienna 1879 -1904 

Hotel Bristol is very good, but expensive ; even rich 
Americans cry out at the prices charged. I am told by 
the Marchioness Pallavicini that they now give a supper 
at two and a half florins after the opera, which is very 
reasonable. At the Grand Hotel the cuisine is not so 
good, but there are more people to be seen here of an 
evening than at the other two hotels, possibly because 
the room in which one dines is much larger than at the 
other two hotels. The people one sees at dinner of an 
evening at these hotels are of a much better style gene- 
rally than those one sees at the restaurants, and they 
mostly dress for dinner, which is rarely the case at the 
restaurants. Sacher's Hotel is one of the best for dinners 
in Vienna, if not quite the best, but very expensive, 
and there is no music there of an evening. The " Arch- 
duke Charles " is also good. The Marquis de Bois Hebert 
told me he much liked it to dine at, for it is select ; and 
it reminded him of the Hotel Vouillemont in Paris, where 
the aristocracy used to meet at dinner years ago. There 
is no music during dinner at this hotel. 

The Meissl und Schadn is a first-rate hotel, but every one 
dines at one o'clock, and you never see any one there 
of an evening. I have mentioned the principal hotels 
now in fashion, as it is quite the thing to dine out in 

ns 



Society Recollections 

Vienna at hotels ; there are plenty of others, but they 
are not so much frequented for dinners and suppers as 
those I have named. During my first visit to Vienna 
the swell hotel to dine at was the Hotel Stadt Frankfurt, 
in the same street as the Matschakerhof Hotel. I often 
dined there at six o'clock, which was then the fashionable 
hour, and once or twice I could not find a table, it was 
so full. The Princess Gonzaga, the wife of the reigning 
Prince of Gonzaga, used at times to ask me to sit at her 
table when she dined there with her mother, the Comtesse 
Roncadelli. I remember saying to her mother that I 
found the room terribly smoky, but she replied that she 
did not mind the smoke in the least, and that it amused 
her to dine there. The Princess spoke English well, and 
advised me when I travelled in Italy to travel on a Friday, 
as the Italians were very superstitious. I was sure to 
find the trains very empty on that day of the week. The 
Princess read English books by preference ; she was a 
young lady of about five-and-twenty at that time, and 
used often to be invited to the Hof Burg to dinner at the 
Empress of Austria's table, which was considered a very 
high honour indeed. 

I remember the young Baronesse Vecsera, whom the 
Crown Prince of Austria was so much in love with, used 

176 



In Paris and Vienna 1 879-1904 

always to have her supper after the theatres and opera 
at the Hotel Stadt Frankfurt with her family, but never 
with the Crown Prince. I used often to see her there ; 
she was a very striking-looking girl with a beautiful figure, 
but I did not consider her a beauty ; she was very dark, 
and had more a piquante face than a pretty one. The 
dead brother of the Emperor of Austria, Archduke Karl 
Ludwig, used constantly to dine with his suite at the Hotel 
Stadt Frankfurt then, at a table always reserved for him. 
The Stadt Frankfurt was considered the best hotel in 
Vienna, better than the Imperial ; the Princes Rohan 
occupied the two first stories of the hotel all the year 
and the swell Austrians who had no house in Vienna 
lived there. The Hotel Stadt Frankfurt changed pro- 
prietors, and from that day the hotel altered entirely ; 
the best people left, and eventually it was closed. It 
was knocked down, and a cafe built in its place. Every- 
body who can remember the Stadt Frankfurt says there 
never has been such a good hotel since, and they don't 
think there ever will be one as good. I can remember 
once two American ladies complaining to the head waiter 
of two ladies smoking in the dining-room, and asking 
him to beg them not to do so ; he answered that it was 
impossible for him to comply with their request, for one 
N 177 



Society Recollections 

was the Princess Trauttmansdorff and the other the 
Princess Esterhazy. The American ladies left the room 
and dined below where the common people take their 
meals in a room which happened to be empty at that hour. 
The principal restaurant when I first came to Vienna 
was the Stefan Keller, which still exists, but it is in 
a different place and it has changed owners. It is not 
now nearly so good, being mostly frequented by rich 
middle-class Jews ; that and Dreher's were the two best 
then. There used to be a dancing place, called Schwen- 
ders, to which everybody went on a Saturday evening ; 
it was a very long way from the town. I remember 
going there with a brother officer, whose acquaintance 
I happened to make in Vienna. We arranged to go 
there together, and when we arrived there was a military 
band playing, and a great number of people dancing. 
My friend saw a young girl in great despair because the 
lace of her dress was torn. He went up to her, without 
knowing her, and offered her a pin to arrange it as well 
as she could ; and a few minutes afterwards a man came 
up to my friend and returned him the pin most indig- 
nantly, making a long speech in German, which was 
completely lost on him, as he did not understand two 
words of German. He could plainly see that it was 

178 



In Paris and Vienna 1879 -1904 

jealousy which had prompted the man to act thus, and 
the man thoroughly believed my friend understood him, 
but pretended not to do so. The whole evening he cast 
furious glances at him, which amused us immensely. 
The poor girl tried to calm her lover by protesting that 
she did not know us at all, which he did not seem to 
believe. We did not get home till three o'clock in the 
morning, and left the people still dancing. One never 
hears of Schwenders now ; I do not think that it exists 
any longer. There is a place somewhat like it called 
Wimberger, which is also a very long way off, at which 
dances take place and the same kind of people go to 
them, but they are not nearly so much frequented by 
visitors as Schwenders used to be. 

There are many new places within easy reach, and 
this I fancy must be the reason why visitors to Vienna 
confine themselves more to them, such as the Sofien- 
saale and the Blumensaale. At the former, in winter, 
there are balls of every sort and kind, and at the latter 
only mask balls. I have mentioned already that Sacher's 
Hotel is one of the best hotels in Vienna for dining at ; 
it belongs to the same proprietress as Sacher's Garden 
in the Prater, which I have already described. One 
day I was dining at Sacher's Hotel at one o'clock, and 

179 



Society Recollections 

the Due d'Orleans was also dining there with the Comte 
de Grammont and two other gentlemen. When I went 
up and spoke to him he shook hands with me and said 
he was sorry to be prevented from dining that year 
at the regimental dinner in town, and desired me to 
express his regret at not being able to do so when I went 
there, which I said I would do. He is very pleasant, and 
speaks English, as every one knows, quite fluently and 
with no accent. Now that he has married an Austrian 
Archduchess he lives a great deal in Austria and Hungary, 
where his wife's father has a property. The Due d'Or- 
leans always stops in Vienna at the Imperial Hotel, but 
generally lunches at Sacher's at one o'clock in the public 
room, which is never very full of people. I have never 
met him at the Imperial, though I dined there of an even- 
ing very frequently, but the head waiter told me that 
he often dines there of an evening, and always at the 
same table. 

Of late years the Austrians have taken a great deal 
to have five-o'clock tea, and the Hotel Bristol has opened 
a tea-room from five to seven, where a band plays during 
those hours. It is usually very well attended ; a good 
many cavalry officers go there, and some very elegantly- 
dressed ladies, besides a great many Americans who 

i8o 



In Paris and Vienna 1879 -1904 

happen to be living at the Hotel Bristol. It is the only 
hotel in Vienna where five-o'clock tea is accompanied by 
music. The Duchess of Marlborough always stays at \/ 
the Bristol when in Vienna. I have constantly seen her 
in the dining-room, with some members of the Embassy ,/ 
and Prince Schwarzenberg, but never in the tea-room. 
On Christmas Eve they have a magnificent Christmas- 
tree in the centre of the dining-room at the Hotel Bristol, 
which is all arranged with light blue paper and silver. 
The tree is lighted by electric Hght and looks exceedingly 
pretty ; it is left in the room until the end of the first 
week in January. Sometimes some very elegant enter- 
tainments are given at the Bristol by members of the 
aristocracy in the tea-room. One day the Archduke 
Salvator, the husband of the Emperor's daughter Valerie, 
gave a very smart dinner-party in this tea-room. 



181 



CHAPTER IX 

VIENNA— THE BALLS 

IN the winter there is a great number of balls given 
in Vienna. I do not think that in any capital in 
Europe there are so many balls given as in Vienna. They 
begin towards Carnival, and there are so many that it 
would be utterly impossible to go to a quarter of them, 
even if one desired to do so. The ball of the Stadt Wien 
"^'' is one certainly worth going to see. It is given in the 
^^ Rathhaus, or Hotel de Ville, and is usually attended by 
the Emperor ; but last year he did not attend it, there- 
fore the Archduke Franz Ferdinand, the heir to the 
throne, was there in His Majesty's place ; all the 
dignitaries of the State are present, including the Prime 
Minister and the Mayor of Vienna, who are obliged to 
be in attendance. Very little dancing takes place, as 
the immense room is so full of people, who chiefly walk 
about. The Emperor, or the Archduke, stands on a 
raised platform, with the suite and other people who 
are invited by him, and they remain for about an hour ; 

182 



In Paris and Vienna 1879 -1904 

the Emperor or Archduke then walks through the room 
to the buffet, where a glass of wine is offered to him by 
the Mayor, after which he takes his departure. It is 
a dull affair, but the room is worth seeing. It is the 
longest, if not the largest in Vienna. There are a great 
many tradespeople there. A man with numerous decora- 
tions saluted a friend of mine, and I asked him who he 
was. He surprised me by sa5dng that it was a jeweller, 
who had a very large shop near the Graben. 

One of the prettiest balls in Vienna is that of the 
" Frauenheim," which is given at the Sofiensaale ; it 
is a ball at which young girls make their debut, and they 
are always dressed in white, somewhat similar to the 
bal blanc in France. The ball is usually patronized 
by an Archduke of Austria and an Archduchess, generally 
the Archduchess Josepha, the wife of Archduke Otto. 
Another very important ball, also given at the^Sofien- 
saale, is the ball of the " White Cross " ; the committee 
consists of officers chiefly, and one must obtain an invita- 
tion from one of the committee, and by payment of ten 
florins. Some of the best families in Vienna attend this 
baU, which, as I have said, is more of a military ball, 
though a number of civilians are present. Last year 
the Archduke Louis Victor, the Emperor's brother, 

183 



./: 



Society Recollections 

attended it, besides several princesses. For the Imperial 
family there is always a raised platform, where they sit 
in a half-circle, and look on at the dancing. What strikes 
a stranger so much is that smoking is allowed in the 
rooms leading into the ball-room, where people have 
supper at all hours during the ball. I took supper with 
Major de Glentworth, an American, who had served twenty 
years in the Austrian 7th Hussars, and whose brother- 
in-law is equerry to the Archduke Salvator, the husband 
of the Emperor's daughter Valerie. 

There is a ball given at the Sofiensaale, called the 
" Concordia " ball, to which a great number of people 
go, for it is remarkable for the elaborate dresses of the 
ladies. There are a great many actresses there, so that 
very swell ladies do not go to it, and there are scarcely 
any young girls who attend. It was so crowded last 
year that one could hardly move about the room, and 
dancing did not take place till a great number of the 
people had left. A Russian dancer from St. Petersburg, 
Mme. Kscheschinskaia, created quite a sensation by 
wearing a necklace of diamonds and emeralds of an 
enormous size. It was a present from the present Tsar 
of Russia, Nicholas II. Odilon, the famous actress at 
the Volkstheater, was beautifully dressed, and aU the 

184 



In Paris and Vienna 1 879-1 904 

celebrities in Vienna were present. The Viennese, both 
ladies and gentlemen, always go to a cafe after the ball, 
and stay there till six or seven o'clock in the morning, 
sitting, talking, and smoking, and taking some refresh- 
ment in the way of coffee, tea, or liqueurs. 

The Princess Metternich gets up a ball at the Sofien- 
saale every year, at which every one has to appear in 
costume. Last year it was called the " Kopf Redoute," 
which being translated means " Head Redoute," at 
which every one had to wear some fancy headdress. 
Most men chose a Turkish fez, and the ladies had to 
arrange some fancy headdress, powdered hair, or some- 
thing altering their usual headdress. The ball was a 
great success. I made the acquaintance of a lady who 
was dressed in a Greek costume, and as she was masked, 
like most of the ladies, I had no idea what she was like. 
She appeared to be pretty from her ears and mouth, which 
were visible. An officer of the 5th Lichtenstein Dragoons 
also made her acquaintance, saw her afterwards without 
the mask, and he said he was greatly disappointed in 
her. She was a married lady, but had left her husband 
at home on this occasion. I happened also to see her some 
time afterwards, and thought, like my friend, that she 
looked much better in her Greek costume with the mask. 

185 



Society Recollections 

One year the Princess Metternich gave what she called 
a " White Redoute," in which the costumes were far 
finer. I spoke to a lady in French, who was masked, 
and she appeared to know all about me. She had seen 
me at Karlsbad, at Franzensbad, and at Gmunden ; she 
told me that she could not possibly tell me who she was, 
and said it was quite impossible for me to call on her. 
She said that she had only been to the Princess Auers- 
perg's ball that season besides this one. I endeavoured 
to find out who she was, and while she was looking for 
her sister, Count Bellegarde, of the Horse Guards, offered 
her his arm ; the sister took his other arm, and then she 
went away. I fancy it was the daughter of the Ambas- 
sador Prince zii Eulenburg, from her hair and the way 
she arranged it, and for many other reasons, but I never 
found out for certain. I asked her to let me see her 
face, but she only showed me her mouth. I told her 
that if everything were as perfect as her ears and mouth 
I could easily guess who she was ; but she did not wish 
me to know, she said, and so I was mystified. The 
other ladies who spoke to me there I generally guessed 
by the voice almost at once, though they managed to 
intrigue other men. The supper at these balls was 
always excellent and very animated ; the ladies, ex- 

i86 



In Paris and Vienna 1879 -1904 

cepting a few who unmasked almost at the beginning of 
the ball, kept their masks on all the time. The Mar- 
quise de Reverseaux, the wife of the French Ambassador, 
had a very lovely dress at the " Kopf Redoute," but 
she did not wear any mask. The Princess Metternich 
had also a magnificent dress ; she, too, was not masked, 
nor were any of the Archduchesses of Austria. 

There was a very grand fete at the Kiinstlerhaus, 
ending with a ball, in which the costumes were designed 
by some of the greatest artists in Vienna. At first there 
were tableaux vivants, which were really very fine indeed, 
but the heat was terrific, as the building is not large 
enough. After supper the dancing took place. The 
price for entrance was rather high ; twenty florins was 
asked on the last day for a ticket, and at the last moment 
they refused to admit any one for forty florins. The 
ball of the Karl Theatre is amusing for gentlemen at the 
Continental Hotel, where all the actresses of the Karl 
Theatre go. Some of them were very beautifully dressed 
indeed ; men of the nobility go to this ball. Prince 
Thurn und Taxis was there two years ago, and some- 
times an archduke goes to it. At the Sofiensaale every 
Saturday there are ordinary masked balls during Carnival, 
but they are very badly attended. The redoute at the 

187 



Society Recollections 

Hofopern-Theater used to be very well attended, but for 
some years these redoutes at the Hofoper have not been 
allowed, for fear of fire breaking out. 

One of the most amusing baUs is given at the Drei Engel 
Saale by Frenzl to the corps de ballet of the K.K. Hofoper. 
Gentlemen receive invitations, otherwise they are not 
allowed to enter the room. The gentlemen are mostly 
from the nobility. To see the ballet-girls dance is quite 
a pleasure, as they dance so weU ; they dance, of course, 
with all the gentlemen who are invited. Before the 
dancing commences there is usually a performance. 
The last time I was there Fossati, a dancer, was dressed 
as a woman, and imitated wonderfully well Otero and 
other celebrated dancers. When he first came in with a 
long wax taper in his hand to sing a song I really thought 
it was a woman ; he imitates a woman's voice as well 
as he does her mode of dancing. The supper was at 
small tables. I sat with some officers I knew and some 
of the dancers from the Hofoper. Afterwards we went to 
a cafe, as is usual, to end up the evening, or rather the 
early morning. The redoute held at Ronacher's in place of 
the K.K. Hofoper Redoute is not nearly so well frequented 
as it used to be when it was held at the K.K. Hofoper. 
The price of admission is the same, but the people don't 



In Paris and Vienna 1879- 1904 

seem to care for it so well. As I said before, there are 
hundreds of balls in Vienna during Carnival; every 
profession gives a ball, even the waiters and cab-drivers. 
Austria is decidedly a country fond of dancing, or rather, I 
ought to say, that Vienna is the capital of Europe in which 
dancing is more cultivated than in any other. In 1866, 
when the Prussians were advancing within two hours 
from Vienna, the Viennese were dancing ; and even in 
sorrow they cannot refrain from dancing. 

One New Year's Eve I was dining at the Imperial 
Hotel in the society of two ladies, when at midnight they 
put out the electric light, and we were suddenly plunged 
in darkness. Then they lit it again for the new year ; 
and people from other tables, whom we did not know, 
came and drank our health, which seems to be the pre- 
vailing custom in Vienna. I have seen the same thing 
done elsewhere in Vienna ; it is usual to put out the 
lights at midnight, where there are hundreds of people 
assembled together. The fete of St. Nicholas is thought 
a great deal of in Vienna ; children always look forward 
to it with great delight. They are accustomed to receive 
presents of sweets on that day, and all the confectionery 
shops have what they call a krampus, or a kind of 
devil in red attached to every box of sugar-plums for 

189 



Society Recollections 

children. Some of these are very expensive indeed, but 
every child one knows torments one to buy a krampus ; 
I have often been asked for it. At Christmas it is usual 
in every house, be it ever so poor, to have a Christmas- 
tree ; there is scarcely a home in Vienna without its 
Christmas-tree. Christmas is thought much more of 
in Vienna than New Year's Day, just as it is in Germany 
and in England, excepting that servants in Vienna in 
cafes and hotels expect tips on New Year's Day, and 
not on Christmas Day. It is not customary, as with us, 
to decorate the rooms with holly and mistletoe, yet one 
sees some occasionally sold in the streets towards Christ- 
mas time. Strange to say, I have never seen a house 
decorated with it in Vienna, though I am told it is often 
given by one person to another to bring good luck ; but 
it is usually put in a vase, and not hung about the rooms, 
as with us. 

New Year's Eve is thought much more of in Vienna 
than New Year's Day, and big dinners are given. Most 
people sit up to see the new year in. The theatres are 
crammed on New Year's Eve, and it is very difficult to 
secure a place ; and all the tables at the different hotels 
are secured weeks in advance. New Year's Eve in 
Vienna is called " Sylvester Evening," and the principal 

190 



In Paris and Vienna 1879- 1904 

places of amusement advertise particular amusements 
for that evening ; they are kept open until the New Year 
and all through the night ; the people remain drinking 
champagne often until seven o'clock in the morning. 

A very interesting sight, but very difficult to obtain 
admission to, because one must have a special invitation, 
is what is called the " Mazur Evening." It is a ball 
given by the Poles in Vienna, at which they dance the 
mazur. I have been there, and was very much interested, 
as I had never seen the mazur dance before. It is like 
some figures of the cotillon, but danced with much 
entrain ; only the Poles know how to dance it so as to 
give it the amount of life which is needed. I believe, 
though, that to see it beautifully danced one ought to 
go to Warsaw, where it is danced to perfection. A 
great many well-known Poles were at this " Mazur 
Evening " ; among them were the Countess Potocka, the 
Count and Countess Badeni, the Count Bavarowski, 
Prince Sapieha, and many others. 

In former years the mazur used to be danced in Vienna 
in the national costume, which is very gorgeous, the 
men's being more so than the ladies' ; but latterly this 
has been abandoned. Liszt has written in his book 
upon Chopin a very excellent description of the mazur, 

191 



Society Recollections 

and how it is danced at Warsaw in the national costume ; 
he devotes an entire chapter to the mazur. I have seen 
the csdrdds, the Hungarian national dance, danced in 
Budapest, and also in Vienna, and certainly there is no 
comparison in the way it is danced, so much superior 
is the manner in which it is danced in Budapest ; the 
Hungarians put more fire into the dance altogether. In 
Vienna they don't seem to care for Hungarian music ; 
there are none of the Hungarian gipsy bands, like the 
Blue Hungarian Band and various others that play at 
times in London. Some years ago they tried to give 
concerts in Vienna, but they had to give them up as a bad 
job — the Viennese did not care for them. 

In the month of May the Princess Metternich usually 
gets up a Blumen Corso, which takes place in the Prater, 
and every carriage is decorated with flowers, some with 
real and some with artificial flowers. Last year there 
were some very prettily decorated carriages. The 
Lichtenstein Dragoons had a large wagon for the occa- 
sion, in which aU the officers of the regiment stood, 
dressed in the old uniform of the regiment, which was 
white. They had masses of aU sorts of flowers, which 
they threw in handfuls at the occupants of the other 
carriages, and to people whom they knew. The Princess 

192 



In Paris and Vienna 1 879-1 904 

Metternich's carriage was beautifully decorated with 
yellow roses. In our carriage was a very pretty young 
girl of fourteen, with her fair hair down her back arranged 
with flowers, without any hat. She had taken a page's 
part at the aristocratic performance before the Em- 
peror of Austria at his palace at Schonbrunn, and was 
literally smothered in flowers by ladies who knew her. 
The Princess Croy and Countess Wydenbruck Esterhazy 
threw a great quantity at her every time they passed 
in their carriages. The Princess Auersperg had her 
magnificent turn-out covered in red roses ; and in fact 
all the aristocracy was represented. Along the avenue 
of the Prater there were stalls at which one could pur- 
chase flowers, destined to be thrown at the occupants of 
the carriages ; and the Princess Metternich devoted 
the money that it brought in to the Rettungs Gesell- 
schaft, a society founded by Baron Mundy some years 
ago. If any one meets with an accident suddenly 
away from home the Rettungs GeseUschaft is at once 
telephoned for, and they come immediately, for they 
have a carriage in readiness, with a nurse and doctor 
in attendance, and either transport the person to his 
home, or, in very serious cases, to a hospital. I think 
it would be an excellent thing had we such a society in 
o 193 



Society Recollections 

London, where so many accidents occur ; it is quite 
true that we should require something on a much larger 
scale, but I can see no reason why it should not be at- 
tempted, since it is a very great success in Vienna. 

Last year I belonged to the Adeliger Club, which is a 
club of the nobility ; the members give dances every 
fortnight at the Hotel de France, and previous to the 
dance there is usually some singing and recitation by 
well-known actors and actresses. I went several times 
last year, and heard Fraulein Simony recite. It was 
she who played the principal part in Sienkiewicz' " Quo 
Vadis," which had a great run in Vienna. Among the 
members who were present were the lovely Countess 
Potocka, Count Colloredo Mels, who is a bishop and 
quite a young man, a great friend of the ladies, and a 
very well-known personage in Vienna ; and Count 
Leiningen, a cousin of our King, who used to command 
the " Victoria and Albert " yacht, and always resides 
in Vienna now. Count Leiningen told the Httle girl 
who drove with us in the Prater during the Blumen 
Corso that he had only the title of count, yet he bore the 
arms and coronet of a prince, which he has on his carriage 
and harness, and he is styled Serene Highness. 



194 



CHAPTER X 

VIENNA— THE WOMEN 

THE Court carriages are quite as good as a show ; 
the coachman wears an immense three-cornered 
hat, with silver braid and a yellow and black coat, with 
white fur ; it reminds one painfully of a circus. These 
carriages usually belong to some antiquated old Arch- 
duchess, who has probably never been out of Austria in 
her life. The carriages have large crowns on the lamps, 
almost as large as the lamps themselves, and everything 
looks loud and vulgar. The Emperor's and the Arch- 
duke Otto's carriages are so simple that you can hardly 
see the crowns on the carriage, and the Emperor usually 
drives in an open carriage, unless it be very cold indeed. 
The porter of the Archduke Louis Victor's palace, and 
those of some other palaces, are dressed more like beadles 
in the last century in London, and hold an immense staff 
in their hands. 

The arrangement which they have in Vienna for 
coming into a house after ten o'clock at night is very 

195 



Society Recollections 

provoking ; they lock the front door at ten o'clock pre- 
cisely. Thus you have to ring and wait perhaps a 
quarter of an hour till the porter comes to the door and 
opens it, and not only that, you have to pay him twenty 
kreuzers, or fivepence, each time you come in after ten 
o'clock ; and the staircase is pitch dark, as they have 
carefully put out the lights, so you are obliged to have 
a candle lighted for you, which on a very cold night is 
unpleasant. This arrangement also takes place if you 
want to go out after ten o'clock at night from your apart- 
ment ; and if you have guests it is most annoying too, for 
one has to wait at the bottom of the staircase tiU the 
porter has got up. It takes ten minutes or a quarter of 
an hour for him to unlock the front door. This is one 
of the dark sides of Vienna, particularly so as the stair- 
case is never heated as it is in Paris, and only in the 
very best houses is there a carpet on the principal 
staircase. 

When you get inside an apartment in Vienna it is 
comfortable enough, and the cold is kept out by the 
double windows ; moreover the stoves warm the rooms 
much better than a fireplace, but are not so cheerful- 
looking, as we all know from the houses in France and 
Germany, which invariably have stoves and not open 

196 



In Paris and Vienna 1 879-1 904 

fireplaces. The rooms are well furnished in Vienna 
generally, but not so well as in Paris ; the furniture is in 
quite a style of their own ; it is nicer than in London, 
but less elegant than Parisian furniture. Of course all 
modern arrangements exist, such as electric bells and 
telephones, and every room has electric light everywhere, 
so the apartment itself is modern enough, but the stair- 
case is a thing to make one shudder at. The difficulty 
of getting in and out after ten o'clock painfully reminds 
one of a former century. What one misses so much in 
an Austrian hotel is that there is rarely ever a salon, or 
reading-room ; and if there be a reading-room it is 
scarcely ever made use of. It is customary in Vienna 
to sit after dinner in the dining-room, and every one, 
both ladies and gentlemen, smokes afterwards in the 
same room, for there are few ladies in Vienna who do 
not smoke cigarettes. Even quite young girls of the 
best families in Vienna smoke cigarettes after dinner, 
either of an afternoon or evening, and it is by no means 
a rare occurrence to see a young girl at one of the first 
hotels in Vienna light a cigarette after dinner and smoke 
it in public. It does not surprise any one ; in fact, it 
is so usual a thing that no one, takes the slightest notice 
of it. The other day some one stated that they had seen 

197 



Society Recollections 

in Vienna a lady smoker in one of the electric tramways, 
seated in the compartment reserved for smokers. She 
was quite a young girl, of fourteen or fifteen, and was 
very well dressed. She pulled out a silver cigarette-case, 
lighted a cigarette, and began smoking, at which the 
people were rather surprised, as it is not usual for ladies 
to smoke in tramways ; but no one could say anything 
or raise any objection — it merely created surprise at the 
time. 

The old tramways with horses have been entirely 
replaced by the electric tramways ; the old ones used 
to have bells attached round the horses' necks, and one 
could hear them jingling a long way off. I rather liked 
this peculiar noise — it reminded me of the south of Spain, 
where one hears a similar jingling of the bells worn by 
mules ; but people have often told me in Vienna that 
it used to prevent them from sleeping at night. The 
electric tramways are now everywhere, so much so that 
at times it is quite difficult for people on foot to cross 
some of the streets. The electric tramway has done a 
good deal of harm to the flakers, as a great many persons 
use the tramway now in place of the fiaker. The fiakers, 
however, will always be employed for the Prater, where 
the fashionable drive is, if they are not so much used 

198 



In Paris and Vienna 1 879-1 904 

in the town as formerly. They are rather expensive ; 
they ask two florins an hour generally, but if they drive 
one to the Prater they demand at once five florins, and 
expect a trinkgeld, or tip, of an extra florin. Vienna is 
a place where every one expects a tip ; the waiters at 
the hotels and restaurants are entirely dependent on 
tips, as they are not paid any wages, nor are the chamber- 
maids in the hotels. A stranger does not understand 
this, and is usually surprised when he hears of it. 

I once took a flaker and told him to drive me to a certain 
street in Vienna ; he drove me to quite a different street, 
and I then asked Mm the reason why he had not driven 
me to the place I wanted to go to. He said, " I have 
driven you to a street close by, as I dare not drive you 
into the street you want to go, for I have too many debts 
in that street." I therefore got out where he put me 
down, and came back to him afterwards. The idea 
rather amused me, as it never happened to me anywhere 
else. It reminded me of one of Theodore Hook's novels 
— " Gilbert Gurney," I think it is called — where a man 
buys a horse, and the man who sells it to him tells him 
particularly not to ride in a certain street, as the horse 
always comes to grief in that street ; however, he does 
so once by accident, when a man rushes out of a house and 

199 



Society Recollections 

seizes the horse by the bridle — it is a stolen horse that 
he has purchased ! 

A man I knew in Vienna, who was partly English, 
Baron Edlingen, his mother being an English lady, said 
that though he much preferred England to Austria, and 
London to Vienna, there were three good things in 
Vienna. I asked him what they were, when he said, 
" The flakers, the ladies, and the music " ; that everything 
else was perfectly detestable, but the three things he 
mentioned were admirable, and better in Vienna than 
elsewhere. The ladies have the reputation of being very 
pretty, which they undoubtedly are. You see some 
very good-looking ones indeed, and they are famous for 
their figures. With the exception of London I have never 
seen prettier women anywhere ; some of them are rather 
too stout, but when they are young they are remarkably 
pretty ; you cannot walk out without seeing some attrac- 
tive faces in all classes of society. I think the aristocracy 
are the least good-looking, if you take them on the whole, 
though individually there are some who are really quite 
lovely ; for example, the young Comtesse Hunyadi, one 
of the Comtesses Zichy, Comtesse Mysa Wydenbruck 
Esterhazy, the daughters of the Princess Auersperg, 
and a great many others I could name. 

200 



In Paris and Vienna 1879 -1904 

The Austrian women, and more particularly the 
Viennese, age very soon. At thirty some of them are 
quite faded and passee. I have noticed this particu- 
larly with the Jewesses, who at twelve or thirteen years 
old are as developed as English girls of fifteen or sixteen ; 
but they fade as rapidly, besides becoming excessively 
stout, so much so, that an American doctor who was in 
Vienna for a few weeks last year said they were abnor- 
mally stout, and that he never saw such chests as some 
of the women had in Vienna. This abnormal stoutness 
is a peculiarity of the Jewesses, and, what is more, the 
Jews admire it ; and they do not consider that a woman 
is worth looking at who is not extremely stout, according 
to our English ideas ; thus all the Jewish beauties in 
Vienna are tremendously stout. With the aristocracy 
it is just the contrary ; a slender woman is more ad- 
mired, but they think more of a good figure than they 
do of a pretty face. 

There are some lovely young girls in Vienna, but un- 
fortunately they do not retain their beauty ; whether 
it be the severe climate or not, I don't know, but they 
soon lose that beautiful pink and white complexion which 
they have ; it seems entirely to have left them at the 
age of seventeen or eighteen. I have noticed many 

201 



Society Recollections 

instances of this kind, happening to young girls whom ] 
have known in Vienna. I knew a young fair girl of 
thirteen who really was quite a remarkable beauty, and 
looked more like an English girl. She wore her golden 
hair in the English style, hanging down loose, and not 
as it is the fashion here, plaited and put up high ; she 
had a most lovely pink and white complexion. But at 
fifteen her complexion had very much faded, her front 
teeth had decayed, she was abnormally stout, and she 
looked in long dresses more like a girl of eighteen or nine- 
teen. An attache of the Austrian Embassy in London 
once told me, speaking about an Austrian lady I knew, 
that I must not judge an Austrian lady by an English 
one, as they had quite different blood in their veins ; 
that an English lady was so correct and particular in her 
affections, whereas an Austrian lady had southern blood, 
and could not control her passions, and that therefore 
things were pardoned in an Austrian lady which cer- 
tainly would never be pardoned in an English one. 
Moreover, if an Austrian lady were fast they thought 
nothing of it, as they were all fast, and it was quite 
the exception not to be so. They think it the most 
natural thing in the world for a girl or woman to have 
lovers, and they are not particular about her having 

202 



In Paris and Vienna 1879- 1904 

more than one either, if she Hkes ; their code of morahty 
is quite different from ours in many respects. Even school- 
girls of twelve and thirteen have intrigues in Vienna, 
while in England they are quite looked upon as babies, 
and indeed they are babies ; but in Vienna they appear 
very much older than they really are, and constantly 
one sees girls of fourteen about five feet eight or more in 
height, which is a very rare occurrence with us. They 
appear much more advanced in many other respects. 
I fancy it must be a good deal, too, because they are 
obliged to go to a public school from eight till fourteen 
years of age, and afterwards those of the upper classes 
go to private schools, and the others finish their schooling 
at fourteen. It is extraordinary how many languages 
they learn besides their own — French, Hungarian, and 
the Czech language ; the latter they seem to pick up in 
Vienna. It is very difficult, and somewhat similar to 
Russian or Polish, being a Slav language, and some words 
are quite impossible to pronounce unless one learns them 
as a child. 

The prettiest women in Austria are those from Moravia 
and Bohemia, a great many of whom are seen in Vienna. 
Their language is the Czech language, but they also 
speak German — the better classes of them at least do, 

203 



Society Recollections 

and the others when they have been a short time in 
Vienna soon master it ; their own language being so 
very difficult, they find other languages quite easy to 
learn. The Polish women are also remarkable for their 
beauty. Galicia, a part of Poland, belongs to Austria, 
and from hence come a great many Poles to Vienna. One 
of the loveliest girls I ever met in my life I saw on a 
steamer when I was going down the Danube between 
Linz and Vienna. She was a Polish girl from Cracow, 
in Galicia, Mile. Sophie Kieszkowska, who had a 
beautiful teint and the most lovely golden hair I think 
I ever saw, and blue eyes, like the blue sky you see in 
Spain and southern countries, spoke French very well, 
and German but indifferently. I heard some time after- 
wards from the daughter of the governor of Galicia, 
Mile, de Zalewski, that she was considered the belle of the 
balls she went to at Warsaw. I heard from Mile. Kiesz- 
kowska several times. She always wrote in French to 
me. She eventually married a Polish count. She 
amused me very much by saying that she intended to 
marry in order to have more freedom to enjoy herself ; 
that she considered a married lady had a right to have 
lovers, which was the opinion of most Polish girls, so 
she informed me. 

204 



In Paris and Vienna 1 879-1904 

The German women in Vienna are like those in Ger- 
many, perhaps more refined-looking, as there is such a 
mixture of races in Vienna ; a pure-bred German woman 
is rather a rare thing in Vienna, unless she be of a real 
German family, and not of an Austrian one. There are 
some celebrated Hungarian beauties in Vienna, who are 
of a different type altogether, being mostly dark, with 
black or auburn hair, and they form quite a contrast to 
the Austrians, who for the most part are blonde. The 
Hungarians do not seem to stay long in Vienna, they 
come and go. I don't think they appreciate it so much 
as Budapest, for they always seem glad to return to their 
home. I had a fauteuil one night at the K.K. Hofoper 
during the performance of the ballet " Brahma," next 
to two ladies ; one was very blonde and a lovely woman 
of about three-and-twenty, and the other, her com- 
panion, was dark. I made their acquaintance, and in 
going out of the opera I offered the blonde my umbrella, 
as it was snowing. They invited me to accompany 
them home, as they lived quite close in the Maximilian- 
strasse, and they asked me if I would come to their apart- 
ment, but on seeing an old gentleman near their house, 
much to my amazement they suddenly rushed off and 
left me, evidently not wishing me to come with them. 

205 



Society Recollections 

Several days passed and I had almost forgotten them, when 
one evening I went again to the K.K. Hofoper. Passing 
a gentleman to gain my seat, he asked me if I spoke 
English, and on hearing that I was English he exclaimed, 
" Thank God ! " f or he had not met any one who could 
speak Enghsh since he had been in Vienna. I found 
out that he was in the Service, like myself, and it was 
with him that I went to Schwenders' dancing place, 
which I have already described. Suddenly I perceived 
the two ladies sitting in precisely the same places as 
before, and talking to a general in uniform, who was 
standing up conversing with them. I related to my new 
acquaintance how I had made their acquaintance, and 
asked his advice whether to go up to them or not ; he 
encouraged me to do so, however, but I felt rather ill 
at ease. Nevertheless I went, and they received me well. 
The blonde said to me in French that I was not to accom- 
pany them home, but did I know the Stadt Park ? — if so, 
I was to meet her there the next day in the morning at a 
quarter to eleven. She said the hour in the German way, 
which is rather confusing to one who is not very con- 
versant with German, as at that time I was not. I went 
the next morning at a quarter to eleven to the Stadt 
Park, and found no one there at all resembling her. I 

206 



In Paris and Vienna 1879- 1904 

afterwards came to the conclusion that she meant a 
quarter past ten, as in German they say ein viertel elf^ 
" a quarter eleven " being literally translated for a quarter 
past ten. She also told me she was going to the K.K. Hof- 
oper two nights afterwards, as she had a subscriber's ticket, 
when they were giving " Tannhauser," and asked me to 
come too. It so happened that on the night when " Tann- 
hauser " was to be given the programme was changed 
to "II Trovatore," when subscribers' tickets were not 
available. I went, but of course did not see the two 
ladies. I only once caught sight of them during my 
stay in Vienna afterwards, driving in a fiaker very quickly, 
but they did not see me. I found out that the blonde 
lady was the Comtesse Gisela T. . . . and the other was her 
lady companion ; that she was the friend of an Archduke 
of Austria, who was very wealthy indeed ; and that she 
was considered one of the most beautiful Hungarians in 
Vienna. I heard quite by accident a good many years 
later that she had met with a most terrible death in 
Vienna. While smoking a cigarette, she put it behind 
her, probably to hide it for some reason, when her 
light muslin dress took fire and she was burnt to death. 
The only daughter of the Archduke Albrecht of Austria 
met with a similar death. She was only sixteen when, 

207 



Society Recollections 

in the same manner, she ht a cigarette, and was burnt 
to death. 

The Archduke Albrecht was the richest of the Arch- 
dukes ; the celebrated Albertina belonged to him, where 
are the finest engravings perhaps in Europe. I was 
much interested on visiting the collection of engravings 
at seeing one of the Viscountess Stormont, by J. R. Smith 
after Romney, and who was put down as being the wife of 
the Archbishop of Canterbury. I told them of the error, 
and was thanked by the director, and I showed him a 
better proof of the same, a proof before letters, which I 
had from my grandfather, who was her son. They 
showed me a very fine collection of prints after Sir 
Joshua Reynolds, and also after Gainsborough and 
Romney; but the director of the Albertina informed 
me that the best collection of English engravings was 
to be seen at the Hof Bibliothek, in Vienna, belonging 
to the Emperor, which is probably the best collection 
of English engravings in the world. 



208 



CHAPTER XI 

VIENNA— THE MILITARY 

VIENNA has rather a large garrison, but there is 
only one regiment of lancers stationed there at 
a time, which constantly changes ; one regiment of 
hussars is quartered near Vienna, and this also is changed 
very often. There are several infantry regiments in 
Vienna quartered there for a short period, but the regi- 
ment of Arciren Guard, corresponding to our Life Guards, 
remains permanently there, as also do the Hungarian 
Guards, which are either in Vienna or Budapest. The 
uniform of the lancers is blue with bordeaux-red facings, 
and the uhlanka they wear in winter is trimmed with 
astrakhan fur ; it is short, like the tunic, and the officers 
have behind their tunic a fringe in gold lace between the 
two buttons, and the soldiers have the same in yellow 
cotton braid. The czapka, or helmet, is different from 
ours, the square at the top being more slanting and less 
high, and it looks better. It is covered in red cloth with 
gold braid crossing it. The officers have no gold lace on 
p 209 



Society Recollections 

their tunic, except the fringe I have mentioned, and gold 
lace stars on their collar to tell their rank — a silver collar 
or a gold one, from a major upwards, according to the 
regiment. Every regiment of lancers has the same 
bordeaux-red facings, and there are fifteen regiments of 
lancers in Austria altogether ; they are recruited from 
Bohemia and Galicia, and the officers have to know the 
Czech or the Polish language. The hussars are either 
light blue or dark blue ; there are eight light blue regi- 
ments and eight dark blue regiments of hussars. The 
uniform is somewhat similar to our hussars, excepting 
that the tunic is shorter and braided with gold lace 
rather differently. I think their tunic, which is shorter, 
looks smarter than ours. I prefer it, too, to the Prussian 
hussars. The attila they only wear on grand occasions, 
but we have discarded it entirely. There are twelve 
regiments of dragoons ; their uniform is light blue, with 
various - coloured facings, according to the regiment. 
For instance, white, yellow, black velvet, red, etc. etc., 
and the officers only wear a gold lace cord over one 
shoulder, from the collar to the shoulder for their belt, 
which is in silver. The officers wear no gold lace at all 
in the dragoon regiments, and their helmets are some- 
what similar to our Dragoon Guards. The soldiers of 

2IO 



In Paris and Vienna 1 879-1904 

the dragoon regiments are chiefly Austrians, and speak 
German, but those of the hussars are all Hungarians, 
and the officers are obliged to speak Hungarian. The 
uniform of the Arciren Guard is green with red facings, 
and white breeches with high boots ; the officers' uniform 
in full dress is red covered with gold lace, rather like 
our bandsmen of the Guards, but they never walk in this 
uniform. Upon coming from the K.K. Hofburg they drive 
in carriages supplied by the Emperor. The officers and 
men of the Arciren Guard wear long white coats, and 
their usual uniform is green with red facings. The 
Hungarian Guard undress uniform for officers is green 
with silver lace like hussars, and full dress is scarlet ^y^ 
with silver lace, and a tiger skin which is very 
showy indeed. The line regiments' uniform used 
formerly to be white, but now it is dark blue, with 
different - coloured facings. The officers of the Hun- ^y 
garian regiments wear a tiger's claw in gold lace 
on the facings of the sleeve ; the men wear this in 
cloth on the sleeve, which distinguishes them from those 
belonging to Austrian regiments. The Hungarian regi- 
ments wear trousers quite tight-fitting to the leg, and 
the Austrian regiments ordinary trousers. No gold lace 
is worn by line officers, and when on duty they wear a 



Society Recollections 

yellow sash tied round the waist. Their shako is very 
similar to that worn by the French, and something Hke 
that which our infantry used to wear. The uniform of 
the artillery is brown with red facings and blue trousers ; 
their shako like the infantry shako, only having a large 
black plume twisted across the shako. The rifles wear 
a grey-blue uniform, with green facings ; their trousers 
being of the same colour, with a green stripe. The 
officers of the rifles have a very large green stripe down 
the trousers, and their shako has black plumes. Officers 
are not compelled, as with us, to take part in the daily 
parades and to march out with the regiment, for when 
they have served a few years they may take up office 
work entirely, when they are quite free from all parades 
and marching out with the regiment. They are much 
better treated than with us, for if they should meet with 
any accident they are not forced to retire from the 
service, but are employed for office work. Soldiering is 
more of a profession in Austria than it is with us. With 
our officers it is more of a luxury ; indeed, the general 
idea abroad is that an English officer serves for nothing 
but glory, and receives no pay at all. It is hard to con- 
vince foreigners of the contrary, and really there is 
some truth in it, for an English officer's pay is inade- 



In Paris and Vienna 1 879-1 904 

quate for the position he holds in comparison with other 
professions in England. 

In Austria there is no longer the same system of pro- 
motion as we have ; the promotion in regiments, which 
was done away with as in Germany several years ago, 
now takes place through the army according to seniority, 
and every one tells me it is an infinitely better system. 
A subaltern of the cavalry or infantry has to do precisely 
the same work as a non-commissioned officer with us ; 
and the leave an officer gets in the year is only six weeks 
at a time, though he can obtain leave for a few days very 
easily, and pretty often. 

Officers have great privileges in Austria in the theatres 
or tramway or train ; they pay very much less, and they 
have also facilities for being employed in the diplomatic 
service, or as engineers, or on the railway, should they 
quit the service. Most of these advantages are quite 
unknown to us. In fact, our army officers are badly 
treated on the whole. In certain regiments they have 
customs which have been in existence for numbers of 
years ; for instance, in the Windischgratz Dragoons 
the officers are not allowed to wear a moustache. This 
regiment is one of the most distinguished in Austria. 
In certain regiments of the hussars and dragoons there 

213 



Society Recollections 

are only members of the aristocracy who are officers. 
In the Guards an officer can only serve for a few years, 
when he is then transferred to a cavalry regiment. In 
the Guards they must have at least an income of five 
thousand florins a year, and are mostly of the nobility. 
The landwehr or militia is not like our militia ; the officers 
are employed aU the year like the ordinary troops, only 
the landwehr is not thought so much of. There are 
lancers of the landwehr as well as infantry and rifles of 
the landwehr. The Austrian soldiers are very fine- 
looking men, and I have heard it said that if they had 
had such good officers as the Prussians in 1866 they would 
have beaten the Prussians. They have regiments of 
pioneers and a military train in Austria for constructing 
bridges across rivers, etc., which we have not, the work 
being done by the Royal Engineers with us. The regi- 
ments are numbered in Austria, but are usually called 
by the name of the owner of the regiment — for instance, 
one regiment is called Prince Ludwig von Bayern, 
another Prince Ruprecht von Bayern — or according to 
the general's name whom the regiment belongs to for the 
time being ; and when he changes, it changes its name 
too. One thing I have not mentioned which is very 
remarkable with officers of the nobility is that they wear 

214 



In Paris and Vienna 1 879-1 904 

a brown overcoat instead of a black one which is worn by 
other officers not belonging to the nobility. Then those 
officers who have fifteen ancestors on their father's and 
mother's side wear a small gold band on the right side 
between two gold buttons, which means that they are 
chamberlains of the Emperor ; and the small gold cord 
is for the key of a chamberlain, which, however, they do 
not wear. 

Only those people who are titled are privileged to go to 
the Ball bei Hof given at the K.K. Hofburg by the Em- 
peror ; not even officers can go if they are not titled. Some 
years ago a great deal of fuss was made about an English 
lady who was present at the Ball bei Hof who had no 
title. It was explained to the Austrians that though 
she had no title she was a niece of an English duke, and 
that her ancestors were titled. They accepted these facts, 
though they did not much like them, and they did not 
understand how it was that the lady herself had no title. 
A year or two ago a great sensation was created at the 
Ball bei Hof by a Countess Festetics being requested to 
leave the ball ; the Countess protested, and produced 
her invitation, which was quite en regie, but the invitation 
was intended for another Countess Festetics, and had 
been wrongly addressed. The countess who went to the 

215 



Society Recollections 

ball was a lady who was not of noble birth. Consequently 
when it was discovered that she was present she was 
requested to leave the ball-room. The newspapers 
took the matter up, some being in favour and some 
against the Countess, but the general opinion was that 
she ought not to have gone to the ball, as she must 
have known that she was not what they call in 
Vienna hof fdhig, which means entitled to attend a 
Court ball. 

There is another Court ball which is called Hof Ball 
which is quite distinct from the Ball bei Hof, in that those 
who are invited to the ball are officials of state, officers 
of high rank, and their wives and others who could not 
be invited to the Ball bei Hof. Some years ago, during 
the Empress of Austria's life and when she attended the 
balls at Court, Baron Rothschild and his relations were 
not privileged to attend the Court balls, but since 
the Princess Metternich interceded for them they, as 
well as other barons and their wives, have been 
allowed to attend the Court balls. The etiquette 
used to be very strict when the Empress was young, 
but latterly, as she was never present, she did not 
much care what took place at these balls nor who went 
to them. 

216 



In Paris and Vienna 1879 -1904 

At the Hof Ball there are generally from sixteen hundred 
to two thousand people present, while at the Ball bei Hof 
only seven hundred to eight hundred people are invited. 
Supper is provided most liberally ; each guest is allowed 
to take away with him half a kilo of sweets if he cares to 
do so. A fortnight before the ball the orders are given 
for the finest salmon, trout, turbot, and lobsters to be 
had ready. For one ball alone thirty-five deer are re- 
quired, which are served cold as a principal dish. Chicken, 
roast beef, tongue, pate de foie gras, are among the other 
dishes. All kinds of pastry and sweets are served, the 
latter being wrapped up in paper having the photographs 
of the members of the Imperial family upon it. The 
wines play an important part, although the countesses 
drink only almond milk and lemonade, and the arch- 
duchesses exclusively tea ; but the gentlemen drink wine. 
With the fish and cold meat and chicken a glass of 
French red wine or Rhine wine is drunk, but the principal 
beverage at the Court balls is champagne. The Imperial 
Burg only knows of the existence of one mark, and that 
is Moet et Chandon, which the Emperor himself drinks, 
and which he has served to his guests. The average 
consumption during one evening is five hundred bottles ; 
the same quantity for the Hof Ball as for the Ball bei Hof. 

217 



Society Recollections 

Most of the guests at the Hof Ball take their supper at 
the two beautifully constructed buffets in the new room ; 
and only the archduchesses with the ambassadresses and 
ladies-in-waiting at Court sit in the tea-room, to which 
a staircase leads at the end of the ball-room. At the Ball 
bei Hof the tables are laid for eight hundred guests, and 
the people sit down ten at each table. The most magnifi- 
cent hot-house plants are employed — azaleas, roses, lilac, 
orchids, aU in full blossom, as well as the exotic plants from 
the palm-houses in the K.K. Hof burg, to decorate the ball- 
room and the adjoining rooms for the Hof Ball, and the 
new room and the galleries for the Ball bei Hof. Besides 
this there are five hundred most charming bouquets, 
which have white ribbons attached to them, and these 
are employed for the cotillon. Twelve large bouquets 
with the choicest flowers are made up for the arch- 
duchesses, and if there be a debutante among the number, 
she receives white flowers — lilies of the valley and white 
orchids. A week before the ball everything is put in 
readiness as far as possible, and upon the day before an 
inspection is made by a commission appointed expressly. 
The Emperor himself takes a great interest in it, and they 
say no one knows more what is necessary than he does ; 
when everything is not quite in order, or if anything goes 

218 



In Paris and Vienna 1879 -1904 

amiss, he is the first to find fault. A good deal has been 
changed in modern times, but the Court balls in Vienna 
always maintain the traditions of the oldest Court in 
Europe, and manage to keep up their old device of 
noblesse oblige. 



219 



CHAPTER XII 

VIENNA— THE ARISTOCRACY 

SOCIETY in Vienna is very much divided. There are 
what they call the aristokraien, the families of the 
Prince Auersperg, Prince Lichtenstein, Prince Schwarzen- 
berg, Princes and Comte Kinsky, Prince Trauttmansdorff, 
Count Palffy, and some others who form the highest society; 
then there is the financial nobility — Baron Rothschild 
and family, the Barons Springer and Baron Todesco, and 
several others ; then the smaller nobility — the titled 
officers and their wives and the statesmen ; then the 
untitled officers and their wives and the middle class ; 
then the middle-class Jews, who consist chiefly of bankers, 
doctors of law and of medicine, and some state officials. 
Of late years all these classes meet at certain balls, but 
they rarely marry out of their class, and if they do the 
Vienna world is always shocked, and they talk about it 
for weeks and sometimes months afterwards. The lady 
who marries into a higher class very rarely if ever enters 
into the society of that class, unless she be a foreigner. 



In Paris and Vienna 1879 -1904 

If she be an Austrian, as, for instance, the newly-married 
Fraulein Renard, who was the principal singer at the 
K.K. Hofoper, and has now become a Countess Kinsky, 
there is not the slightest chance of her getting into her 
husband's family set, which, indeed, she never tries 
to do. 

Several of the nobility have married actresses in 
Vienna. Fraulein Palmay, the famous operatic singer, 
is a Countess Kinsky, and she still sings in Pesth and 
Vienna ; and Fraulein Dirkens is now Baroness Hamer- 
stein, and still sings at the Karl Theatre. There are 
also very many others I could name, but they keep in 
the set they belonged to before they married, whether 
they be rich or poor, or whether they leave the stage or 
not. It must not be imagined that they are prejudiced 
against actresses, for if a young girl of the middle class 
marries into one of the aristocratic families, she is treated 
exactly in the same manner as an actress would be treated 
— simply ignored. 

It is astonishing what a great deal the people of the 
rich middle class think of the aristokraten, as they 
call them ; they look upon them as belonging altogether 
to a different sphere from themselves, and it is amusing 
sometimes to see how they cringe to them. I have 



Society Recollections 

witnessed this in several instances. I have known 
several very rich men belonging to the middle class who 
have not dined at the Hotel Bristol or Hotel Imperial 
because they have said they were only hotels for the 
aristocracy, and therefore they could not be seen dining 
there, lest an aristokrat might be dining there at the 
same time. An officer of the lancers who came with me 
once to meet a lady and her husband at a cafe told me 
that he could not go to that cafe often, as it was used 
chiefly by line officers, with whom, as a cavalry officer, 
he could not associate. 

The principal salons besides those of the Princes Auers- 
perg and Lichtenstein and Schwarzenberg, are those of 
the Prince Windischgratz, Comtes Schonburg, Chotek, 
Hardegg, Clam Gallas, Schaffgotsch, Hoyos, Colloredo, 
Princes Salm and Thurn und Taxis. At the majority of 
these houses balls or dinner-parties are rarely given ; 
they have merely receptions at which their friends and 
relations are alone present. The only member of these 
families I have mentioned who gives regularly two balls 
during the winter and several dances is the Prince Auers- 
perg, whose balls are one of the chief events of the winter 
season, and are well attended, for there are generally 
about four or five hundred people invited. Of course 

222 



In Paris and Vienna 1879- 1904 

everything is done on a grand scale by the Princess, who 
owns one of the most dehghtful palaces in Vienna. 

The Viennese do not give dinner-parties, as in Paris and 
London. I was told that the only man in Vienna who 
gives dinner parties is Baron Albert Rothschild. He lived 
a good deal in England, and his brother, Ferdinand de 
Rothschild, lived and died in England. Baron Albert 
Rothschild is the head of the Viennese house of Rothschild. 
I have constantly seen him in his box at the Hofoper, and 
always with Countess Wydenbruck and her daughter. 
The Countess's husband was in the diplomatic service, 
and for some time Minister at Peking. The Princess 
Pauline Metternich organizes balls and fetes, but they 
are not given at her palace, which would be too small for 
that. She is always very ably assisted in her arduous 
work by the Comtesse Nadine Kolowrat and the Comtesse 
Henrietta Chotek, and sometimes, too, by the pretty 
Comtesse Mysa Wydenbruck Esterhazy. 

The Archduchess Marie Josepha, the wife of Archduke 
Otto, who have their palace in the Augarten, only holds 
receptions. Her grande mditresse de la cour is the Countess 
Attems, and her ladies-in-waiting are the lovely Comtesse 
Sophie Zamoyska and her sister, Comtesse Eleonore Zam- 
oyska, and the Marchioness Pallavicini, whose sister is an 

223 



Society Recollections 

English lady, and whom I have mentioned before. 
The Duke of Beaufort Spontin, whose wife was a Prin- 
cesse de Ligne before she married, used to entertain in 
his palace here a good deal, but since his daughter's 
marriage with the Prince Issenburg Birstein he and his 
wife are very little in Vienna. I knew him from meeting 
him at Miss Fanny Parnell's in Paris, before he was 
married, and I have already alluded to him. The English 
ambassador. Sir Francis Plunket, gives some dinner 
parties at the British Embassy and receptions. Those 
who know him like him very much, and admire his daugh- 
ter, who is considered a beauty. Lady Plunket is an 
American by birth. The Marquis de Bois Hebert was 
dining with the Duchess of Cumberland when the guests 
were placed at separate small tables. Lady Plunket was 
rather indignant at the table at which she was placed, 
and said that as the English ambassadress she thought 
she would have received a better place, when the Duchess 
of Cumberland came to her and said : "I put you at my 
table because I thought you would like to sit next to me." 
Lady Plunket had no idea that she was placed at the 
Duchess of Cumberland's table, or, without doubt, she 
would not have made any complaint. 

Austrian ladies of the best society talk French a 

224 



d 



In Paris and Vienna 1879- 1904 

great deal. They often introduce French sentences 
while speaking German, just as the Russians do, but 
they do not speak French with nearly such a pretty 
accent as the Russian ladies do. There is something charm- 
ing in hearing a Russian lady talk French ; she modulates 
her voice, and seems at times almost to sing. French- 
men have often told me that Russian ladies speak French 
more correctly than they do, as they speak the French 
that was spoken in the reigns of Louis XIV and Louis XV, 
and not the more modern French, which is filled with 
slang terms. The Austrians of the best society, unlike 
the French and the English, who love to entertain people 
at balls, parties, and dinners, only invite a few relations 
and friends to their houses, while amusements such as 
balls and parties are rarely given by them. Hence it is 
that there are so many subscription balls in Vienna, and 
these are extremely popular. It may be that the rooms 
in the private houses, with the exception of the palaces, 
of which there are many, are not suitable for entertaining 
a great number of people. But some of the palaces 
belong to families who never entertain from one year's 
end to another, and some belong to royalty, who merely 
give a few formal dinners, which they are obliged to do. 
Very often the Hotel Bristol is chosen by an archduke 
Q 225 



Society Recollections 

in which to give a ball or dinner party, and sometimes 
it is hired for a wedding of the aristocracy. 

Society in Vienna is not as in Paris and London, where 
there is only one society really — in Paris that of the 
Faubourg St. Germain, and in London that of the 
highest aristocracy. In Vienna there are cliques among 
the aristocracy, Austria being a country formed out of 
many different nationalities. The family of the Prince 
Schwarzenberg is of a Bohemian family, and at his palace 
in Vienna they talk the Czech language, and not one 
word of German is ever spoken by them. The Count 
Potocki is a Pole, and frequents chiefly the Polish society 
in Vienna, as do many other families of the Polish aris- 
tocracy. The family of the Count Chotek and Prince 
Windischgratz is Bohemian, and that of Prince Lichten- 
stein and Prince Auersperg Austrian, while the families 
of Counts Hoyos and Clam Gallas are Hungarian, and 
there is very little sympathy between Austrians and 
Hungarians. 



226 



CHAPTER XIII 

VIENNA— THE IMPERIAL FAMILY— CROWN 
PRINCE RUDOLPH 

WHEN the Empress of Austria was alive her grande 
maitresse de la cour was the Countess Harrach, 
nee Princess Thurn und Taxis, and her favourite ladies- 
in-waiting were the Countess Sztaray and Comtesse Ida 
Ferenczy. The two latter were with her when she was 
assassinated at Geneva. From all accounts the Empress 
did not know that she was seriously wounded at first ; 
she showed great courage, as she always did in danger, 
but when she lost consciousness she was taken back to 
the hotel, and died shortly afterwards. I remember 
seeing the Empress in her younger days landing at Dover ; 
she had remained on deck all the time, as she always did 
by preference. She looked remarkably beautiful in those 
days, and was dressed in a dress of violet velvet, trimmed 
with sable fur, and wore a round velvet hat with a white 
osprey feather. When she landed a good-looking young 
Austrian with a fair moustache kissed her hand and 

227 



Society Recollections 

presented her with a lovely bouquet ; and she entered 
the train and continued her journey to Ventnor, in the 
Isle of Wight. 

Once on a visit to our late Queen Victoria the Empress 
of Austria was obliged to go on foot to the Windsor 
station, and she took some refreshments at Layton's, 
the famous pastry-cook shop near the station ; it was 
the last visit she ever paid to our late Queen. The 
Empress was a great favourite with the Hungarians, 
but she was never very popular with the Austrians, not 
even at Ischl, where she resided for so long. The Aus- 
trians were jealous that she should prefer living abroad 
or in Bavaria to living in Austria. Vienna saw very 
little of the Empress ; her sojourn there never lasted 
longer than a few days at a time. In her youth the 
Empress delighted in Vienna ; and one day she went for 
a walk alone in the Karnthnerstrasse. A mob collected 
outside the shop she went into, and this becoming known 
at Court, one of her ladies-in-waiting explained to the 
young Empress that as an Empress she ought not to do 
such things. The Empress was annoyed to such an extent 
that she never walked out in Vienna alone again ; and 
she took a dislike to the formalities of Court life and its 
restrictions, so that it was quite a relief for her to get, 

228 



In Paris and Vienna 1 879-1904 

away to the highlands of Bavaria, where she could enjoy 
her freedom. The Archduchess Sophia, her mother-in- 
law, was very hard upon her, and treated her more like 
a child, as she was only fifteen when she first married 
the Emperor. The intrigues at Court were chiefly 
directed against the Empress by the Austrian ladies of 
the nobility, who expected her to behave more like a 
sedate old lady than a young girl. 

Her marriage with the Emperor of Austria was un- 
doubtedly a love match. It was always desired that 
he should marry her eldest sister, who afterwards married 
the Prince Thurn und Taxis, but the Emperor fell des- 
perately in love with the fourteen-year-old girl, almost 
at first sight, and when the parents thought it was im- 
possible for their youngest daughter to marry the Em- 
peror, they spoke to their daughter, who said she saw 
no reason why she should not marry him, and seemed 
delighted at the idea. The Empress was always called 
" Sissy " by her parents and by the Emperor, and for the 
first year or two, apart from the desagrements of Court 
intrigues, their marriage was a happy one. Later on 
troubles of different sorts came, which were the cause of 
the Empress being so much away from Austria. It is 
true that the Empress stayed at Godollo, in Hungary, for 

229 



Society Recollections 

some time, when a kind of reconciliation took place 
between them. In the last years of her life she was more 
with the Emperor. 

That the Empress was in her younger days a great 
admirer of Count Andrassy is also an open secret in 
Austria ; his nephew was a particular friend of mine, 
Baron Felix Bodog Orczy, the father of the authoress of 
the " Scarlet Pimpernel," Baroness Orczy. He was the 
Hof Intendant at Pesth, and the composer of an opera 
" II Rinegato," performed at Her Majesty's, in London, 
which he conducted himself the first time it was performed. 
Baron Orczy used to speak most highly of the Empress, 
whom he knew personally, and whom he said every 
Hungarian perfectly adored. One day the Empress 
gave a beggar whom she met in the street some silver, 
and meeting a very pretty beggar-girl later, the Empress 
gave her a gold piece ; when her lady-in-waiting asked 
why she had given her so much, the Empress replied 
that she had always sympathy with a pretty girl, and 
that she was fond of everything beautiful. 

I was one whole summer at Ischl when the Empress 
was there at her villa, but I never saw her once ; she 
avoided seeing any one, and kept entirely in the grounds 
of her viUa. Once at Baden-Baden I met her walking 

230 



In Paris and Vienna 1879- 1904 

with her daughter Valerie in the gardens there. I took 
off my hat to her, and she gave me a gracious bow, and 
did not, as she used often to do, put her fan before her 
face. In Austria the people often complained that the 
Empress used on all occasions when she met people who 
recognized her to make use of her fan, which they re- 
sented, but I must say that the Austrians have a rude 
way of staring at anybody of consequence, and I can 
quite understand the Empress not liking to be thus 
looked at. 

That the Empress was a first-class horsewoman all 
Englishmen know, and I heard " Bay " Middleton say 
once that when he piloted her out hunting, some of the 
jumps which she desired to take made him, an experi- 
enced rider, shudder. She had a wonderful nerve, and 
did not know what fear meant in riding. When she was 
quite young she used to play the zither very well. Her 
father, Herzog Max zu Bayern, was a noted zither player, 
and composed several airs for the zither, which are quite 
well known. Baron Orczy told me that often he played 
the zither with the Empress ; as a player of the instru- 
ment myself, it interested me to hear anything about the 
zither. It is an instrument -that one hears in almost 
every house in the highlands of Bavaria, and in Vienna 

231 



Society Recollections 

it is a good deal cultivated ; there are some exceedingly 
fine players at zither concerts in the winter months. 

The Empress spoke Hungarian very well, and English 
and French, of course, and in later years she learnt Greek. 

It is astonishing how well and robust the Emperor looks 
for his age, and what an amount of work he does still ; he 
goes out shooting, and drives in all weathers. The Emperor 
resides at Schonbrunn when in Vienna, and drives back 
there to the castle every evening, coming into Vienna in 
the early part of the day. Very often he goes on a visit 
to his daughter Valerie, who has a number of small 
children. His granddaughter has lately married the 
Prince Windischgratz ; she was the only daughter of the 
late Crown Prince Rudolph. The marriage was a love 
match, but when they had been married only about one 
year they quarrelled on account of an actress at Prague, 
who was fired at by the Princess. The actress has since 
died of the wound. The Emperor, in consequence of 
this event, did not attend the baptism of the son of the 
Archduchess Princess Windischgratz. The whole affair 
caused a painful sensation at the Court in Vienna, though 
it has been hushed up as most events of the kind are. 

The Emperor seems to have had a good deal of trouble 
within the last few years, what with the sad death of the 

232 



In Paris and Vienna 1879- 1904 

Empress, and his son's untimely end. The latter is kept 
a mystery more or less in Vienna, as no one is allowed to 
speak about it at Court, nor is anybody allowed to write 
about it in Austria. All the German books on the subject 
are not permitted to enter Austria. Many books have 
been published in Germany which give a perfectly untrue 
version of the Crown Prince's death, and they all purport 
to be the only true account ; but as an A.D.C. of the 
Archduke Ferdinand once told me, they are all quite 
fictitious accounts. 

I happened to be in town at the time of the Crown 
Prince's death, and went by chance to a German library 
near the Langham Hotel. I remarked to the bookseller, 
who was a German, how sad it was that the Crown Prince 
had committed suicide, whereupon he corrected me, and 
said that an Equerry of the Prince of Wales (now King 
Edward VII) had just been there, and, as the Prince of 
Wales was absent, he was obliged to reply to a telegram 
to the Emperor of Austria concerning the death of his son, 
in German. The equerry could not speak or write 
German, and begged the bookseller to write it for him, 
which he did, making use of the word suicide, but the 
equerry begged him to correct it, for it was not a suicide, 
he informed him. In the official reports it was stated 

233 



Society Recollections 

that the Crown Prince had committed suicide, and it was 
not until I returned to Vienna that I learnt the true 
version of his death. It was through a young Austrian 
girl that I first heard the correct account, and she told 
me that on the evening of that eventful day the Crown 
Prince had arranged to meet the Baronesse Vecsera at 
a house near Mayerling, but before he went there he 
met the gamekeeper's wife, with whom he had a little 
flirtation. The gamekeeper, not knowing who it was, 
fired, wounding the Prince in the back, but the wound 
was a slight one. He then went off to the house where 
he was to meet the young Baronesse Vecsera, but upon 
his arrival whom did he see but Georg Baltazzi, who was 
desperately in love with the young Baronesse, and they 
say wanted to marry her. Baltazzi and the Crown 
Prince came to words, and the former struck the 
Crown Prince with a lantern a blow on his temple, killing 
him at once. The young girl who told me this version 
of the story said she had heard it from the daughter of 
the coachman who had driven the Crown Prince that 
night, but the coachman and all witnesses of the affair 
were paid immense sums for life to keep the matter quite 
secret. She told me, too, that the young Baronesse 
Vecsera was not killed, but that she was compelled to 

234 



In Paris and Vienna 1879 -1904 

be dead to the world, and that she is still living in some 
small place in Bohemia. As for Baltazzi, he was forced 
to leave Austria at once, and went to America. The 
A.D.C. of the Archduke Ferdinand said, in relating the 
mysterious affair of the Crown Prince Rudolph, that the 
only points in which the version which I had heard 
differed from his were that the Crown Prince had been 
killed by a blow from a champagne bottle by Baltazzi, 
and that the young Baronesse Vecsera was killed by 
the Crown Prince. The Emperor, it is said, on hearing 
the version which was universally believed by the public, 
exclaimed that any version was better than the true 
version. 

The Crown Princess Stephanie complained to the 
Emperor about the Baronesse Vecsera before this event ; 
and it was for that reason that the Crown Prince had 
been ordered to leave Vienna for the Herzegovina, and 
before starting had arranged to meet the Baronesse 
Vecsera at this house in Mayerling where the tragical 
event occurred. The Crown Prince, as well as the Crown 
Princess Stephanie, had desired a divorce, but this was 
not approved of by the Emperor. There can be little 
doubt that the Crown Princess irritated the Crown Prince 
by her jealousy. She had him followed wherever he went, 

235 



Society Recollections 

and once she sent a royal carriage to wait for him at a 
house he called at when he did not wish it to be known 
that he was there. The Empress was very much dis- 
tressed at the death of her son, and used always to avoid 
seeing the Crown Princess Stephanie afterwards. 

The granddaughter of the Empress, the Archduchess 
Elizabeth, was not allowed to leave Austria with her 
mother, the Crown Princess Stephanie, by order of the 
Emperor, though she was rarely ever with her grand- 
mother the Empress. Since the death of the Crown 
Prince, the Archduke Franz Ferdinand d'Este is the 
heir to the throne, and he has married lately the Countess 
Chotek, who has been created Princess Hohenberg. 
The marriage is considered a morganatic one, and the 
Princess never goes to Court nor takes any part in Court 
festivities. The Princess Hohenberg is of Czech nation- 
ality, and of a high family in Bohemia. She is not very 
popular with her people, as she is said to be rather arro- 
gant in her dealings with those beneath her. In Austria 
they consider the marriage a morganatic one, but this is 
not the case in Hungary. The Princess has one daughter. 
The Archduke Otto, the brother of Franz Ferdinand, has 
been married a long time to Josepha, daughter of the 
King of Saxony, and their eldest son is a lieutenant in a 

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In Paris and Vienna 1879- 1904 

lancer regiment. They have three other children besides. 
I heard through the Archduke Franz Ferdinand that 
this son of Otto will be the next Emperor of Austria. 
The Archduke Ferdinand is the third brother, but is not 
married, though it is now said that he is engaged to the 
daughter of a professor at Prague, who is of the middle 
class ; he commands a regiment of dragoons. The two 
elder brothers at one time were not very popular in 
Austria, but latterly they have gained much in popularity, 
especially the elder brother since his marriage. He seems 
a devoted husband, and this marriage was in opposition 
to the will of the Emperor at first. In making it he had 
to renounce a great deal ; for instance, his children can 
never succeed to the throne of Austria, nor can his wife 
ever be Empress of Austria. The Archduchess Elizabeth, 
in marrying the Prince Windischgratz, had to renounce 
all rights to the throne of Austria for herself and her 
children. The Archduke Ludwig Victor, the Emperor's 
brother, is unmarried, and belongs to an order of knights, 
the German Ritter Order, who may not marry ; but he 
goes much into society, and represents the Emperor at 
several fetes and balls. 

The Crown Princess Stephanie has renounced her title 
and married the Count Lonyay, a Hungarian nobleman, 

237 



Society Recollections 

and is now simply styled Countess Lonyay. There have 
been various rumours of her obtaining a separation from 
her husband, but he appears very much attached to her, 
and is always with her ; lately she has been very iU. The 
Archduke Eugene, a cousin of the Archduke Franz Ferdi- 
nand, is one of the finest men in Vienna, being over six feet 
in height ; as he walks about the town a mob generally 
follows him out of curiosity. He is a knight of the 
Deutscher Ritter Order, and cannot marry. The Arch- 
duke Eugene is one of the most popular of the 
archdukes in Austria. The Archduke Frederick, the 
husband of the Archduchess Isabella, is greatly be- 
loved by the Hungarians ; they prefer him to any 
of the Imperial family. The Bohemians like the 
Archduke Franz Ferdinand, especially since his marriage 
with the Comtesse Chotek, who is a Bohemian. 

The Emperor is very generous to his relations, and 
there is not one member of his family to whom he gives 
less than two thousand pounds a year apanage. The 
head of the house in every titled family in Austria has 
to give an apanage to the other members of the family. 

One thing I have not mentioned, and it is certainly worth 
seeing in Vienna — the Emperor's stables, and his mag- 
nificent horses. The Emperor puts at the disposal of 

238 



A 



In Paris and Vienna 1879 -1904 

some of the members of his family who cannot afford 
to keep them certain carriages and horses. The Spanish 
riding-school in the Imperial stables is, according to 
a well-known American rider, the finest in the whole 
world. He assured me that he had never seen anything 
to compare with it anywhere. Any one, on payment, 
can learn riding in the Spanish riding-school, where 
chiefly the haute ecole is taught. The Empress used to 
ride there constantly when she stayed in Vienna, and 
was very clever at the haute ecole, which interested her 
immensely. 



239 



CHAPTER XIV 

VIENNA— DOCTORS AND LAWYERS 

VIENNA has a very celebrated school of medicine. 
Students come from America and England to 
study medicine there, and the professors of medicine 
are some of the most celebrated in the world. Professor 
Baron Krafft Ebing, who has died this year, was very 
celebrated in the treatment of nervous diseases ; he 
has been replaced by Professor Wagner von Jaurez, who 
has also made a great name for himself. Professor 
Schrotter, who treated the late Emperor of Germany, is 
also a celebrity for throat diseases in Vienna, and Pro- 
fessor Hofrath Shauta is famous for women's complaints. 
The Duchess of Marlborough comes every year to be 
under the treatment of a celebrated professor for a throat 
trouble she has been suffering from ; and there are many 
Americans as well as English who come to Vienna to 
undergo operations, as the private hospitals are perfect 
in their way, though rather expensive from an Austrian 
point of view. In severe operations the richest people 

240 



I 



In Paris and Vienna 1 879-1 904 

are taken to the Sanatorium Loew, where everything is 
beautifully organized, the best professors being called 
in to attend to the patients. I have been to the Sana- 
torium to visit a patient there, and can testify to the 
admirable way in which invalids are looked after ; they 
have sisters from a convent to wait on the sick, and, if 
necessary, a nurse besides, who is paid extra. The 
attendance they receive is generally much better than 
that they would receive at home even in the most wealthy 
establishments. 

The fee for a professor of medicine is five or ten florins 
for a visit at his house, but for operations very often as 
high fees as they charge in England are demanded from 
foreigners. The dentist who has the greatest reputation 
in Vienna is Dr. Thomas, an Austrian, naturalized in 
America, who is at the same time a very crack shot, 
quite the best in Austria. Dr. Thomas once told me a 
very amusing story about himself. He went when in 
New York to a shooting gallery where there was a figure 
of a man to shoot at. He asked the man there what part 
of the figure he should hit, and the man replied that he 
was lucky if he hit it at all at that distance. Dr. Thomas 
said : " I will see if I cannot hit the right eye," and, to 
the great surprise of the man, he hit it exactly in the 
R 241 



Society Recollections 

centre of the eye. Then he asked the man what other 
part he should aim at, when the man laughed and said, 
" It was quite a fluke your touching the right eye, I 
suppose. Now see if you cannot hit the left eye " ; 
which Dr. Thomas did, to the man's great amazement. 
The man then said : " Who the devil are you ? For I 
know all the best shots in New York, and you are none 
of these ; there is only one man whom I don't know 
who could perform such a feat, and that is Dr. Thomas, 
of Vienna." Dr. Thomas replied: "I am Dr. Thomas, 
of Vienna." 

An English lady went to Dr. R to have some 

teeth stopped, and that dentist told her after some visits 
that he should advise her to have two bridges made. She 
allowed him to make them for her, and altogether she 
paid him about thirty visits, when, to her astonishment, 
he sent in a bill for close on one hundred pounds. Natur- 
ally she protested, and it nearly came to a lawsuit, but 
an expert was asked his opinion, and he cooUy said, " I 
should have charged two hundred pounds." It appears 
that in Vienna, unlike Germany, a dentist may charge 
what he pleases. In Germany there is a regular rate, and 
it is always best to ask what they are going to charge 
beforehand, and to bargain with them if necessary. 

242 



In Paris and Vienna 1 879-1 904 

There are some very good lawyers in Vienna ; one of 
the most celebrated is Dr. Victor Rosenfeld, who is what 
they call a vertheidiger, or one who pleads a case. 
He is very good in certain divorce cases and in criminal 
cases ; he makes more than any other lawyer in Vienna, 
and his charges are high compared to others, but he is 
much more honest than most of them, and tells you at 
once what the case will cost, or thereabouts, before under- 
taking it, which most of them don't. An advokat like 
Dr. Victor Rosenfeld is very much like our barrister, 
though he sees his clients and they consult him person- 
ally. A solicitor in Vienna is a common man, who does 
the work of our solicitor, and lives in the same house, or 
rather in the same office, as the barrister, but he is rarely 
consulted by clients, though he knows as much of his 
work as our solicitors do. 

The office work done by clerks in England is done 
entirely by young girls in Austria, who do it quite as well, 
if not better, than our clerks, and are paid much 
less. In a solicitor's office they smoke cigarettes all 
day long. Dr. Sigmund Kranz is also a very good 
advokat. He is very rich and lives in the Palais 
Palffy ; his wife has her carriage, and box at the 
K.K. Hofoper and also at the Hofburg Theatre, 

243 



Society Recollections 

and she is always beautifully dressed at all the 
smart balls to which she goes ; she speaks English quite 
well, and is considered a Vienna beauty. The judges in 
Austria are never chosen from the lawyers or advokaten, 
as with us ; they consider that it would not be fair upon 
the public. The judges have to make different studies, 
and have to rise gradually till they become judges. In 
all important trials there are always three judges in 
court to decide a case. They have three courts — the 
Landesgericht, the Oberlandesgericht, and then comes 
the highest court of appeal, the Oberste Gerichtshof . In 
very important trials, where the two parties are not 
contented with the decision, they often put their case 
before all three courts, ending with the Oberste 
Gerichtshof, which finally decides the matter. 

The laws are quite different from ours. For instance, 
if anybody comes before the court some inquiry has to 
be made into his or her former life, and if a woman has 
not led a very exemplary life up to the time of the trial, 
no credence is placed in her statements. A woman 
generally fares badly in Austria in a trial, but not quite 
so badly as in Germany. Austrian divorce laws are quite 
different from ours. If two people desire a divorce and 
they are Protestants, they at once obtain it ; but if one 

244 



J 



In Paris and Vienna 1879 -1904 

party does not desire it then it is rather difficult, unless 
one of them has given cause for a divorce ; or, indeed, 
if both of them have behaved badly, in that event they 
can obtain their divorce. It is not as with us, that the 
judge refuses it on that plea. The judge in Austria 
always tries to reconcile the two, and to prevent them 
from divorcing, which he endeavours to do up to the 
very last moment of the trial. In Austria, if either the 
husband or the wife should be a Catholic, then a divorce 
is refused at once, as Catholics are not allowed to marry 
again if they have been married before. Sometimes 
people in Austria change their religion because they think 
that then they will be enabled to marry again, after 
having been divorced ; but this is not the case, as they 
very soon discover. The law says that anybody having 
been a Roman Catholic and married as such, is always 
a Roman Catholic, and therefore not entitled to re- 
marry during the lifetime of either party. 

I knew an Austrian lady who married as a Roman 
Cathohc, and about six months after she obtained what 
they term a scheidung, which is a kind of separation. 
Being only twenty-three, she thought she would like to 
marry again, and she became a Protestant and a natural- 
ized Hungarian, but she was told that if she married 

24s 



Society Recollections 

again and came back to Vienna she would be imprisoned, 
because the law looked upon her as a Roman Catholic ; 
consequently, if she got a divorce in Hungary, which 
she could easily have done, it would not have altered 
matters. I imagine this is the reason why in Vienna 
there are so many young separated women who have so 
many intrigues ; they find they cannot legally marry 
again, so they do not care what they do. 



246 



CHAPTER XV 

VIENNA— THE MINISTRY AND CORPS DIPLOMATIQUE 

THERE are very few of the Ministry in Vienna who 
entertain at all. Herr von Bilinska, the late 
Minister of Finances, and now Governor of the Austro- 
Hungarian Bank, gives some smart parties to his friends 
and relations, and Frau von Bilinska is a charming lady, 
and much liked. Count Welsersheimb, the late Minister 
of War, has three charming daughters, and their salon is 
much frequented by the aristocracy and others, but they 
give merely receptions. Herr von Kallay, the Minister for 
Bosnia-Herzegovina, has a wife and two really lovely 
daughters, who entertain a great deal ; the official world 
and the corps diplomatique are usually well represented 
there. Herr von Jendrzejowicz also one of the Ministry, 
entertains the Polish society in Vienna. His wife is a 
very great favourite with the Poles. 

Count Kielmansegg is the Governor of Lower Austria, 
and his wife, the Countess, is a great musician, besid-rs 
being a good singer and actress, and they entertain 

247 



Society Recollections 

considerably, but never give balls, simply dinner-parties. 
The other ministers do not entertain at all, and there is 
little or nothing to say about them in that respect. 
Count Badeni, the former Prime Minister, is a Pole of 
Italian origin, his ancestor having been an Italian cook 
to the King of Poland. The Count as Prime Minister 
did not please the Austrians, as he only thought of 
favouring the Poles while he was in office. Count Badeni 
is an immensely stout man, and does not give one the idea 
of being very intelligent, though his looks belie him, as 
he is very wideawake upon the interests of Poland. Herr 
von Koerber, the present Prime Minister, is a tiny man 
with a squint, who wears glasses, and to look at him one 
would be inclined to distrust him ; but the Emperor is 
pleased with him, and he tries to please all parties in 
Austria ; in reality he pleases none. How much longer 
he will remain Prime Minister is a doubtful question. 

Count Tisza, the new Hungarian Prime Minister, is 
young for his position, being a little over forty ; he 
seems very energetic, and has maintained his place up 
till now. He often indulges in a slap against Koerber, 
whom he cannot endure. Count Tisza is the son of the 
celebrated Count Tisza who was Prime Minister during 
the Empress of Austria's lifetime, and he lives in Hungary, 

248 



i 



In Paris and Vienna 1879 -1904 

rarely coming to Vienna, except to see the Emperor. 
Prince Rudolph Lichtenstein is the Emperor's Obersthof- 
meister, and is a good-looking old gentleman, always in 
uniform, who drives a mail phaeton, and is constantly at 
the Hofoper, alone in his box. Prince Montenuovo holds 
the same office as the former, and has a very pretty 
daughter, who lately married, and a very nice-looking son, 
who reminds me always of an Eton boy. The Prince is 
very wealthy, and lives in grand style ; his horses and 
carriages are as fine as the Emperor's. When he enter- 
tains he does everything quite royally, but it is not often 
that he does so. The Prince is often to be seen in his 
box at the Hofoper with his family ; he prefers light 
operas and ballets to the heavy German operas. 

The German Ambassador at the time of which I write 
was the Prince zu Eulenburg, whose wife and two very 
pretty daughters received at the German Embassy every 
Thursday afternoon, and gave five-o'clock teas. His 
daughters are not only very charming, but they are most 
talented ; they are musical and speak several languages 
fluently. The Prince had just been recalled to Berlin, and 
was leaving the Embassy at once ; his family, indeed, 
had been absent from Vienna for some time already. 
The young countesses used to go to theatres and places 

249 



Society Recollections 

of amusement alone, just like English girls do. Austrian 
girls are very much restricted in Vienna ; they enjoy 
little freedom, and are almost always accompanied by 
a kind of duenna. The young countesses were often seen 
driving in the Prater, and wherever there was anything 
like a bazaar or fete they always took part in it. They 
must have been a very great loss to Vienna society, as 
there were no young girls of the other embassies who 
could compare with them either for beauty or amiability. 
The Russian Ambassador at Vienna at the time was the 
Count Kapnist, who has since died. His wife, the 
Countess, was a daughter of the Countess Stenbock 
Fermor, nee Princess Dolgorouki. I made the acquaint- 
ance of the mother and daughter at Franzensbad years 
ago, when the present Countess Kapnist was a young 
girl of fourteen with fair hair hanging loose and with blue 
eyes, looking almost like an English girl. She has turned 
out to be very delicate, and is very rarely in Vienna, 
so the Ambassador did not entertain much. 

The French Ambassador is the Marquis de Reverseaux, 
who is very popular indeed in Vienna. He has lately 
married a French widow, an old love of his, I am told ; 
and they give frequent dinner-parties at the Embassy 
to the diplomatic world. The Marquis de la Guiche is 

250 



In Paris and Vienna 1879 -1904 

one of the secretaries, whose wife is rather nice-looking, 
and they also entertain a good deal. The Prince de 
Beam, third secretary, is quite a young fellow, who throws 
about his money a good deal, but he is immensely wealthy. 
The Comte de Lastour, who has just married, is also at 
the French Embassy, and they go a good deal into society, 
and one meets them at all the balls. At the Spanish 
Embassy the Marquis Hoyos and the Marquise give the 
usual dinner-parties, and the only society-going member 
is Senor Don Aguerra, whom I know quite well, and who 
seems to enjoy life very much. He is to be seen every- 
where where there is anything worth seeing. I forgot 
to mention the Prince Schonburg-Walburg at the German 
Embassy, and who only speaks German ; he is now 
second secretary in St. Petersburg. He told me he did 
not care at all for Vienna ; his opinion of Austrian ladies 
amused me. They were very nice to flirt with, but he 
would not marry one for anything ; he would marry 
either an English lady or a German one. 



251 



CHAPTER XVI 

VIENNA— THE OPERA AND THE BALLET 

THE Hofopern-Theater in Vienna as a building can 
compare very well with that of Paris. Some people 
prefer the Paris Opera-house, while others like that of 
Vienna. The Vienna Hofopern-Theater is quite as im- 
posing, but quieter in many ways. There are not so 
many statues outside, and it does not appear so 
gorgeous. Nevertheless, I think I prefer the Vienna 
Hofopern-Theater as a building. The inside of the 
Paris Opera is certainly more luxurious than the Vienna 
one, but many people like the Vienna house even 
better from the inside, and I think I almost do too. 
The Paris Opera-house is so much draped that it is 
very bad for sound, while no fault is to be found with 
the Vienna Hofopern-Theater in that way ; it is almost 
as perfect as La Scala at Milan for sound, and the latter 
is considered incomparable. The foyer in Paris is mag- 
nificent, and in Vienna, with the painting after M. von 
Schwind, it is very fine indeed. The staircase is much 

252 



In Paris and Vienna 1879- 1904 

grander in Paris ; in Vienna it is also of white marble, 
but its appearance is simpler, and yet the general effect 
is very good. 

The price of the places is very much higher in Paris ; 
for the fauteuil d'orchestre one pays fourteen francs, while 
in Vienna one pays only from four florins fifty kreuzers, 
which is equal to nine francs, to three florins, seven 
francs. In Paris the fauteuils de halcon are eighteen 
francs each, while in Vienna they have none at all, only 
boxes, which are much cheaper than in Paris. When I 
first went to Vienna I was told that only those people 
of the nobility who had fifteen ancestors on both their 
father's and mother's side were entitled to have a box on 
the first tier ; but that custom seems entirely to have 
been abolished, for, apart from the Imperial boxes which 
are close to the stage on either side, the others belong to 
subscribers, such as Baron Albert Rothschild, Frau von 
KaUay, the wife of a minister, Frau Dittmar, the wife of 
a rich fabricant of lamps, and many others not of the 
higher aristocracy. 

The orchestra of the K.K. Hofoper is the same as the 
Philharmonic Society or Philharmoniker, which has the 
reputation of being the finest orchestra in the world. At 
the Philharmonic concerts there are one hundred and 

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Society Recollections 

twenty musicians ; at the K.K. Hofoper there are not so 
many, about eighty or ninety, excepting, of course, for 
Wagner's operas, when the orchestra is considerably in- 
creased in number. They have now lowered the position 
of the orchestra, so that from the fauteuils one can only 
see the heads of the musicians, which is certainly an 
advantage in one respect, since during a ballet one can now 
see the feet of the danseuses^ which formerly was not the 
case. The director of the Hofopern-Theater, Mahler, did 
not, however, have it lowered for that reason, as he per- 
fectly hates the ballet, but to impart a different sound 
to the orchestra, as at Bayreuth, where it is deemed a 
great success. In Vienna it does not appear to have made 
the difference in sound that was expected of it, so there 
is now a talk of having it further lowered. 

During my first visit to Vienna I had the pleasure of 
seeing Wagner conduct his operas " Tannhauser " and 
" Lohengrin," when the finest singers that could be 
obtained sang in the two operas. Fraulein Ehnn sang 
the part of Elsie in " Lohengrin," and Winkelmann sang 
the part of Lohengrin. In " Tannhauser," besides 
Fraulein Ehnn, who had a glorious voice and was young 
and pretty, and who had a world-renowned reputation, 
Frau Materna sang ; also Winkelmann, the famous 

2S4 



In Pans and Vienna 1879- 1904 

tenor, and Fraulein Wildt, who was quite as good as Frau 
Materna in her style. Fraulein Wildt some years after- 
wards committed suicide by throwing herself out of 
window from her apartment in Vienna. Wagner was 
staying at the Imperial Hotel at that time with his little 
son, who was then eight years old, and some one asked 
the child how long his father was going to stay in Vienna, 
when the child said : Wir sind gay nicht zufrieden mil 
Wien, und gedenkcn sehr bald abzureisen. ("We are 
not at all pleased with Vienna, and think of leaving it 
very shortly.") The child evidently expressed very 
naively the opinion of his father, who did not pronounce 
any opinion himself at the time of his stay ; but in his 
books he has alluded to Vienna with a certain amount of 
contempt, calling it a town of Halb Asien (Half Asia). 
Wagner detested the Jews, as everybody knows, and 
Vienna swarms with Jews. At the time Wagner was 
in Vienna the Jews did not much appreciate his operas, 
but now they quite rave about him, and when one of his 
operas is given it is almost impossible to secure a place 
at any price, except by taking it a week beforehand. 

At that time Schumann's music to " Manfred," by Lord 
Byron, used to be given at the K.K. Hofoper. The poem 
was recited with appropriate costumes and scenery, and 

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Society Recollections 

it always pleased immensely ; now it is never given ; 
it seems to have left the repertoire entirely. I suppose 
taste has changed since then, but they often give some 
inferior operas, which the public seem to appreciate, such 
as " Louise," by Charpentier. " Louise " cost no end of 
money to mount, and those who go to it go chiefly for 
the magnificent scenery and lights which are shown on 
the stage in all kinds of colours. Mahler is very fond 
of reviving forgotten operas, some of which have little to 
recommend in them, such as " Euryanthe," of Weber ; 
and he has lately revived " La Juive," of Halevy, which 
is certainly better than the former, but rather out of date. 
It is really admirably mounted, and the costumes are 
very fine. The divertissement is prettily arranged for 
the ballet to the rather pretty music, in which the flute 
plays a solo part during most of the time. The " Dame 
Blanche " of Boieldieu is among the operas Mahler has 
revived, but the public does not seem to care for it. 
Mahler is very fond of Wagner's operas, especially the 
" Nibelungen Ring," which is constantly given. 

When I was first in Vienna they often gave a ballet 
called " Brahma," by D'AU'argine, which filled up the 
whole of the evening, in which the celebrated Bertha 
Linda danced the chief part. She was a lovely woman, 

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In Paris and Vienna 1879- 1904 

and very graceful in her attitudes. Bertha Linda was 
the wife of Makart, the celebrated painter, and after his 
death she married an Austrian count. The principal 
mime at that time was Fraulein Abel, who had a lovely 
figure, and married the Count Orsich, who is enormously 
rich, and keeps several race-horses in Hungary. The ballet 
was then, as it is now, a principal feature in the Vienna 
K.K. Hofoper. Now the principal danseitse is Signorina 
Sironi, who comes from La Scala at Milan, but she is 
getting on in years, and does not dance nearly so well as 
Mile, Kscheschinskaia from the Marie Theatre in St. 
Petersburg. She danced in Vienna as a guest last year, 
and perfectly astounded the public. Her pirouettes 
and Yonds de jamhe, of which she made thirty-three con- 
secutive tours on her points, turning on the same foot, 
thoroughly brought down the house. Signorina Sironi 
was quite relieved when the Polish dancer left Vienna 
for St. Petersburg. 

Mile. Kscheschinskaia gave all the money she earned 
in Vienna to the poor of Vienna. Mile. Kscheschinskaia 
was formerly a great favourite of the present Tsar 
Nicholas II, and has received most beautiful presents 
from him, besides a lovely property near St. Petersburg. 
She is said to be the possessor of some millions of roubles, 
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Society Recollections 

and still dances out of fondness for the stage. She and 
Pepita are the two best danseuses in St. Petersburg, 
though Mile, Mossolowa, who danced in Vienna, also from 
the Marie Theatre, is an admirable dancer du rang frangais, 
as they call them in Italy. Very often now they give a 
ballet at the K.K. Hofoper which fills up the whole even- 
ing, such as "Excelsior," by Marrenco, or "Der faule 
Hans," by Nedbal, the Bohemian composer ; the best seats 
are usually occupied by the aristocracy, and during a 
Wagner performance the audience is mostly Jewish. The 
present director, Mahler, is a converted Jew ; his kinsmen 
admire him, but he is, on the whole, rather unpopular, 
as he takes such dislikes to some of the singers. For 
instance, Winkelmann, the celebrated tenor, had to study 
for " Euryanthe," during some months, and on the open- 
ing night he gave his part to the tenor Slezak, which was 
treating a celebrated tenor like Winkelmann very badly 
indeed. 

The Wagner operas are splendidly given in Vienna, 
but they are even better given in the new Prince Regent 
Theatre at Munich. I must say " Don Juan," by 
Mozart, was wonderfully given in Vienna when Otto Jahn 
was director of the Hofopern-Theater, with Miles. Materna, 
Ehnn, and Widlt, Messrs. Winkelmann and Reichmann ; 

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In Paris and Vienna 1879- 1904 

but Mahler has had differences with most of the best 
singers at the K.K. Hofoper, and they have consequently 
left. It must not be imagined that there are no good 
singers left ; there are still some excellent ones, for 
instance, Fraulein Selma Kurz, who was engaged to sing 
at Covent Garden in Puccini's new opera, " Madame 
Butterfly," is a very good light soprano, besides being 
rather pretty and young, and sings very well in operas like 
" Mignon," " Faust," " lolanthe," by Tschaikowsky, 
" II Trovatore," and certain light German operas. Then 
there is Frau Forster Lauterer, who sings in " Die Koni- 
gen von Saba," by Goldmark, and " Pique Dame," by 
Tschaikowsky ; Fraulein von Mildenburg, who is more 
for the Wagner operas, and Frau Hilgemann. 

Of tenors the best are now Schmedes, Winkelmann, 
Schrotter, and Slezak, though Mahler was the cause of 
Van Dyk, the best tenor, leaving the Hofoper — a great loss 
to the Hofoper, The best baritone is Demuth, who is one 
of the best in the world. Ritter is also very good. Mrs. 
Savile, an American, who used to sing in " Manon," " La 
Traviata," " Lucia di Lammermoor," has lately left the 
Hofoper, and since she left, these operas cannot be given, 
unfortunately ; " Manon " used to be well sung by 
Van Dyk and Mrs. Savile in the principal roles. Mile. 

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Weidt is a new acquisition to the Hof oper ; she is certainly 
the best soprano they have for operas hke " Aida," 
" Pique Dame," " L'Africaine." Fraulein Schubert is 
also a new soprano, but her voice is not above the average, 
and she is a poor actress. I saw her lately in the principal 
part in " La Juive," by Halevy ; the public prefer her in 
it to Frau Forster Lauterer ; possibly the role is not to the 
latter singer's taste, for there can be no doubt that 
Frau Forster Lauterer has a far finer voice, and is a 
far better actress. Frau Forster is another very useful 
singer. She takes the page's part in " Le Nozze di 
Figaro," and Zerlina in " Don Juan," but latterly she 
has not been employed. The singers at the K.K. Hofoper 
are paid a fixed sum yearly, and every time they sing 
they are paid extra for that evening, so it makes a con- 
siderable difference to those who are never asked to sing. 
Frau Lilli Lehmann, when I first came to Vienna, was 
at the Hofoper. She sang in " Tristan and Isolde," and 
" Norma," and it was really a treat to hear her. She 
sings now in Vienna, but her voice has lost much of its 
former beauty ; the prices of the stalls, however, are 
always doubled when she sings even now. I remember 
hearing her sing once in Paris, and I sat next to a Pro- 
fessor of the Conservatoire, who said that her voice was 

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In Paris and Vienna 1 879-1 904 

one of the finest he had ever heard, that her range of notes 
was simply marvellous, and that her manner of sustaining 
certain notes was quite astonishing. 

In Vienna operas with a divertissement are always 
beautifully given, because the ballet, as in Paris, is so 
good, whereas in London we have nothing of the sort. 
Things ought to be very different in London ; even small 
towns in Germany have a better ballet than there is at 
the Opera at Covent Garden, where there is only a first- 
rate premiere danseuse, generally from the Scala at Milan, 
and one or two other dancers. In Vienna there is a 
regular school of baUet ; girls are engaged from the age 
of six, and not admitted after the age of ten. They have 
to study writing, reading, geography, French, and the 
piano, besides dancing ; they have to work at their lessons 
of an afternoon. Their dancing at the K.K. Hofoper is 
from nine in the morning until one, and sometimes, when 
there is a rehearsal, until two or half-past two ; the girls 
of six to thirteen years old are mostly in the first class, 
though if a girl of twelve or thirteen shows great ability, 
she is promoted at once into the second class. The girls 
are never engaged at the K.K. Hofopern-Theater until 
they have attained their fifteenth year, and they receive 
no pay until then, when they get twenty florins a month, 

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and extra money for taking part in operas. They earn 
in all about forty to forty-five florins a month, which is 
nearly four pounds. Their costumes are found for them, 
but they receive four florins a month to purchase ballet 
shoes. 

The girls who are paid twenty florins a month are 
called Elevinnen, and when they improve they are 
promoted to coryphees, and receive higher pay, about 
sixty florins a month, with extras when they take a 
page's part in operas. The soUstinnen receive two 
hundred florins a month ; the premiere danseuse receives 
about twelve thousand florins a year. The dancers at 
the K.K. Hofopern-Theater are most of them very pretty 
girls, and it is an open secret that most of the well-known 
ones have very rich lovers. Every lady in Vienna knows 
all of them have some rich friends more or less, and that 
even the quite young ones from twelve to thirteen years old 
have their admirers ; all this is an open secret, which the 
ladies in high society often speak about. A lady-in-waiting 
to one of the Archduchesses told me as much as I already 
knew about the subj ect . The dancers of the K . K . Hof oper , 
they say here in Vienna, have the pick of all the men of 
society. It is very much the fashion for some of the 
aristocrats to organize supper parties, five or six men to 

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In Paris and Vienna 1 879-1904 

as many dancers, which are very harmless entertainments. 
I have been to them, and beyond a Httle music, if there 
is a piano, the whole entertainment is generally over by 
twelve o'clock. The girls conduct themselves very well, 
and do not drink like girls of that class generally do in 
London. 

Franzi Huszar, one of the prettiest dancers, has lately 
married a lieutenant, and just left the K.K. Hofopern- 
Theater. One day I met her with her husband in the 
street ; she introduced me to him. Fraulein Erich, a 
solistin, has married a milhonaire, and Fraulein Schreitter 
has married a Russian count, but still dances at the 
K.K. Hofoper, but not for the sake of the money, 
because she owns several houses in Vienna, which the 
count made her a present of before marrying her. Marie 
Kohler is one of the best dancers at the K.K. Hofoper, 
besides being a very good mime. She is a blonde 
who is decidedly pretty, and very intellectual for a 
danseuse; she dances in the " Puppenfee," and represents 
the fairy, in which she is dressed in white muslin covered 
with stars of gold, and she really looks quite lovely when 
she suddenly appears from behind a curtain which is drawn 
aside. You see her standing alone lighted up by the 
electric light in a bright red background, while all the rest 

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Society Recollections 

of the stage is plunged in darkness. It is supposed to be 
midnight and the dolls are asleep, but after the " Puppen- 
fee's " appearance they wake up and dance ; they are 
lighted up too, and the whole of the stage is one blaze of 
light. The different costumes of the dolls are very effec- 
tive ; there are dolls simply in their nightdresses with 
drawers on ; dolls in Spanish costume ; others dressed 
as pierrots, and, in fact, every sort of costume imaginable 
is utilized, and after each group has danced a variety of 
dances, they form a kind of square. The foremost kneel 
down while the ones behind stand up, and towering above 
them all is the " Puppenfee," or " fairy of the dolls," 
looking quite beautiful in her graceful attitude, almost 
like a goddess. 

The music of the " Puppenfee " is by Bayer, who has 
become quite celebrated since he wrote it. It has been 
given at La Scala at Milan, and in Berlin, besides other 
towns in Germany. It is even given again this (1904) 
year at La Scala, Milan, and has been the favourite ballet 
in Vienna for years. A ballet which is very often given 
is " Sonne und Erde," in which the four seasons are 
represented. Spring is a tableau showing a garden in 
which a young schoolgirl is learning her lesson ; a young 
man makes her acquaintance, afterwards other school- 

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In Paris and Vienna 1879 -1904 

girls appear, who dance and play. Summer is a tableau of 
a place by the sea, where some girls are bathing ; others 
have been rowing and hold oars in their hands ; finally 
they dance in their costumes. Autumn is a tableau in 
which some old people dance the old-fashioned dance of 
Vienna. And winter is the prettiest tableau of all : 
the trees are covered with snow, and it is snowing fast, 
and the younger dancers dressed in white like frosted 
snow carry Christmas-trees lighted up, which produces 
a most delightful effect. The music of this ballet is by 
Bayer too, and is rather pretty, but that of the " Puppen- 
fee " is prettier. 

A new ballet produced this year is " Der Faule Hans," 
by Nedbal, the famous Bohemian composer. It is a long 
ballet, taking up the whole of the evening. The first 
scene is an interior of a Bohemian peasant's house where 
some girls in national costume dance a Bohemian polka, 
of which the music is very taking, the airs quite national in 
character. Men and women are present, and the " faule 
Hans," the lazy Hans, is fast asleep in a hay-loft. The 
noise awakens him, and he comes down, whereupon they 
all laugh at him, but he boasts of his great strength to 
his brothers, and after wishing his father and mother 
good-bye, sets off on a journey. His brothers go too, but 

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they have quarrelled with Hans. The second scene is : 
laid just outside the princess's palace, of which you can 
see one side. There is a flight of steps leading from a 
balcony on to the stage, and down these steps descend 
gradually the premiere danseuse, Sironi, in black covered 
with steel embroidery, and eight of the best dancers 
dressed in black with a veil of crape covering their face 
and head. They are in mourning because the princess 
is held captive by a dragon, and when they arrive on the 
stage they dance a Trauerwalzer , or mourning waltz, 
which is really a very fine composition — one of the best 
airs in the ballet. Later on the princess appears surrounded 
by her ladies-in-attendance, who are also in mourning. 
The princess is Marie Kohler, who is really excellent in 
her mimic acting ; she betrays true fear and terror at her 
captivity. The third scene is in a forest where the brothers 
of the " faule Hans " appear. A beggar-woman, who is 
in reality a fairy, comes up to them, and asks them for 
alms, but they send her away speedily, and then go off 
themselves. Then Hans appears, and sits down, and 
eats a piece of a loaf of bread, when the same fairy comes 
up to him, and asks him for something. He immediately 
divides the loaf of bread, giving her half of it, whereupon 
she goes away. It becomes dark in the forest, when some 

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In Paris and Vienna 1 879-1904 

fairies appear, and then towards break of day some 
wasps, which are represented by little girls, who are 
dressed in tight-fitting clothes in yellow and black striped, 
with wings ; they flit across the stage, taking very tiny 
steps on their half points to a delightful waltz. After- 
wards some butterflies, in the most beautiful colours, 
appear, some in rose colour, with wings of dark blue and 
rose, others in blue, with wings of a darker shade of blue ; 
then some insects, which are red combined with black, 
others which are green and black, and various flies, which 
are also wonderfully imitated. 

All these costumes are in the richest shades of silk 
and velvet, and cost an enormous sum of money. 
I don't think I ever saw such beautiful costumes 
excepting once at a ballet at Her Majesty's in 
London, which was given at Christmas time ; it was a 
ballet of insects, and they said at the time the costumes, 
designed by a French firm, had cost about six thousand 
pounds. The dances by the different groups of butterflies 
and insects which take place in this scene, and the way 
they are grouped, with the combination of colours, is 
one of the prettiest sights one can possibly imagine. The 
eye never seems to tire of contemplating this gorgeous 
display of colour with its shades of every imaginable 

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Society Recollections 

description. Some of the insects are of a light blue, 
which is shaded to the darkest blue ; the blending of 
colours is simply wonderful, and the tout ensemble is 
somewhat like that which one sees when looking through 
a kaleidoscope. The fourth scene is laid in a part of the 
forest, where the dragon is seen ; the head and neck of it 
are alone visible, and are of an enormous size. The head 
is larger than a man, and it moves to and fro, opening its 
mouth and spitting forth volumes of fire. The princess 
and the two brothers of Hans are on the stage. She im- 
plores one of them to kill the dragon, which he volunteers 
to try to do, but approaching near the dragon, from 
whose mouth still issues fire, he turns back and rushes 
away. Then Hans comes on the stage in a suit of armour, 
and after having approached the princess, who has 
fainted away, he draws his sword, and dealing two or three 
blows at the dragon's head, regardless of the fire, manages 
to kill it. A proclamation has been issued in the land 
that whosoever shall destroy the dragon and be the van- 
quisher afterwards in a tournament shall obtain the 
princess's hand in marriage. Hans and his brothers 
read the proclamation before they attempted to kill the 
dragon. The moment the dragon is killed Hans ap- 
proaches the princess, who has recovered from her swoon, 

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In Paris and Vienna 1879-1904 

and she thanks him, embracing him at the same time; 
but he can hardly believe his eyes, and draws back from 
her, though she soon inspires him with courage, and he 
embraces her. 

The fifth scene is outside the palace ; the princess 
and royal family are seated on an estrade, which is 
raised above the stage on the side, and the stage is 
filled with the royal guards, who are girls dressed in a 
lovely costume of pink silk, with breeches of pink silk to 
the knee — wearing large Gainsborough grey hats with a 
long pink ostrich feather, and holding swords in their 
hands. They dance a very pretty dance in which they 
cross swords with each other at intervals during the 
dance, and then draw aside to allow two men to fight in 
armour, who are the two brothers of Hans. On the 
defeat of one of them, Hans arrives on a white charger in 
very fine armour, and descends from his charger and 
fights with the vanquisher, whom he does not know, as 
they both have their vizors pulled down over their faces. 
Hans very soon disarms his brother, but spares his life 
on finding out, from his having raised his vizor, who he is. 
Then Hans advances towards the princess, whose parents 
proclaim him the husband of their daughter. The royal 
guards dance a most inspiriting march to some of the 

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Society Recollections 

best music in the ballet, and the curtain falls, and the 
ballet is at an end. 

One of the ballets which had a great success in Vienna, 
and was first of all performed there, was " The Red Shoes." 
It was given in London at the Alhambra. I never saw it 
in town, but have constantly seen it in Vienna. The 
principal tableau was when the dancers, all dressed in 
light blue, with their skirts covered with gold stars, held 
a star in gold in each hand, and clashed the stars together 
at times to the music. To see these dancers in ballet 
skirts, about one hundred and sixty or seventy of them, 
dancing on their points in such wonderful measure to a 
lovely waltz, was a sight which one can never see in 
London ; for at the Empire and Alhambra the dancers 
cannot compare with those of Vienna at the K.K. Hofoper. 
They all can dance on their points in Vienna, whilst only 
the first dancers can do this in England, and there are 
but two or three of these at the utmost at each theatre in 
town. Why this is so I cannot say, except that the 
girls are not properly taught how to dance in London, or 
perhaps it is not in their nature to dance well. I doubt 
very much this last hypothesis, and think it comes from 
indifferent teaching. 

A Russian amateur du ballet whom I chanced to sit next 

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In Paris and Vienna 1879 -1904 

to one evening at the K.K. Hofoper during the performance 
of a ballet told me that he considered the corps de ballet 
was quite exquisite, but that the premiere danseuse was 
very inferior to those in Russia at the Marie Theatre at St. 
Petersburg, and that she would be considered a second- 
rate danseuse there ; that Kscheschinskaia, Petipa, 
and Mossolowa were very much better in every way, and 
that Sironi could not be at all compared with them. They 
are now giving a children's ballet at the K.K. Hofoper 
called " Die Kleine Welt," which is a great success, and 
the music of which is quite lovely. Only small children 
take part in it. One of the critics said that in England 
it would not be allowed, as the English were so prudish, 
and would think it put ideas into their heads which they 
ought not to have. The poor man little knew how many 
children are employed in England in pantomimes ; that 
the ballet puts wrong ideas into their heads is nonsense. 
Why should it do so more than any other performance, 
play, or pantomime ? 

One of the most charming ballets they often give in 
Vienna is " Vergissmeinicht," a ballet of flowers, in 
which all the dancers represent different sorts of flowers. 
The music, by Goldberger, is lovely, and it is imported 
from Berlin, where it had a very great success at the 

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Society Recollections 

K.K. Hofoper, and is still given. The subject of this 
ballet is not much, but the arrangement of the different 
dances and the colouring is delightful. One of the prettiest 
danseuses at the Vienna K.K. Hofopern-Theater is a girl 
called Gabrielle Klobetz, who has the most lovely golden 
hair, a good complexion, and blue eyes. She is only 
between fourteen and fifteen, and is nearly six feet in 
height, being the tallest of the ballet. She is employed 
often as a mime, these being generally chosen for their 
height. 

When an Emperor or a King comes to Vienna they 
always give a gala performance, and invariably give a 
ballet at the K.K. Hofopern-Theater in Vienna ; evidently 
the royal family in most countries has a taste for 
ballets. The only exception to this rule is the Em- 
peror of Germany, William II, who always desires to 
hear an opera, and he generally selects a French one 
when he comes to Vienna, not like his grandfather, 
William I, who adored the ballet. I have not men- 
tioned that the K.K. Hofoper in Vienna in winter is 
heated by hot air, and always regulated according to the 
weather. One very severe winter it was the only place 
where I did not feel the cold, so I went there to get warm. 
In summer it is kept delightfully cool ; you do not feel 

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In Paris and Vienna 1879- 1904 

the heat. I have been there on some intensely hot days 
in summer, and it was quite a pleasure to be there ; no- 
where else was it so cool. A very wealthy American 
used some years ago to give dinners to two young girls 
of the ballet at one o'clock in a restaurant, ordering 
every luxury that was to be had. Sometimes I went too 
and joined him. He said once, " we were Hke two old 
birds waiting for two small tits." He said that he always 
got the best of the Austrians, although they invariably 
tried to take him in ; an American was far too smart for 
them. He applied this remark more to the men than 
to the women, and principally at race meetings, where 
his race-horses almost always beat the Austrian horses. 



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CHAPTER XVII 

VIENNA— THE THEATRES 

THE K.K. Hofburg Theatre is more imposing- 
looking than the Hofopern-Theater, but it is not 
nearly so pretty a building. The interior is very 
luxurious, and the foyer, with the portraits of all the 
celebrated actresses who have acted at the old Burg 
Theatre, painted by celebrated artists, is very fine indeed. 
The staircase is quite as grand as the K.K. Hofoper, but 
the house is very bad for acoustics ; whether the decora- 
tions be too heavy or not, I cannot tell. The boxes are 
more luxurious than at the K.K. Hofoper, and mostly 
have a salon behind each box ; the seats are about the 
same price as at the K.K. Hofoper. 

The plays which are given are generally very serious 
ones ; for instance, all Grillparzer's plays, Schiller's, 
Goethe's, Shakespeare's, and now and then a French 
play translated from a modern writer such as Sardou or 
Pailleron. 

During my first visit to Vienna I saw " Richard III " 

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In Paris and Vienna 1879 -1904 

acted at the old Burg Theatre. Lewinsky took the 
King's part admirably ; the celebrated Wolter played 
also. She was always considered by the Viennese to be 
the finest living actress, but I never could admire her 
acting to the extent the Viennese did. She left me quite 
cold always, but they were perfectly mad about her acting, 
and even thought her superior to Sarah Bernhardt in 
certain roles. Wolter afterwards married a Count Sulli- 
van, and died two years ago. In " Richard III " even 
the minor parts were acted by first-class actors and 
actresses, and the play was rendered in such a manner 
that one could not have seen it better performed any- 
where in Europe or America. At that time at the Burg 
they gave all Shakespeare's plays one after the other at 
Christmas time ; and it was said that the Burg was the 
only theatre in the world where this was done, and 
beautifully done too. Every minor part was played by 
a celebrity more or less, and the mise en scene was most 
accurate, as were the costumes. In fact, I thought the 
Viennese were more interested in Shakespeare than we or 
the Americans were ; for at that period a play in London 
by Shakespeare was almost a thing unknown. Irving 
had not improved the English taste, as he certainly did 
a few years afterwards, by mounting some of Shake- 

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Society Recollections 

speare's plays at the Lyceum, In those days at the old 
Burg I saw " Romeo and Juliet," and the actress who 
took the part of Juliet was new to the Burg Theatre. 
She had come from Hamburg, where she had created a 
perfect furore ; her name was Louise Frank, and she was 
said by certain critics even to surpass Wolter in her 
acting. The Viennese found that in " Romeo and Juliet " 
she overacted the part, that she showed her emotions 
too much, by unnecessary exaggeration in voice and 
movement. They were accustomed to the rather insipid 
acting of Wolter, who was more inclined to act, the most 
tragical scenes in a quiet manner. The contrast was 
evidently too great for them, and therefore they con- 
demned Frank entirely, and she soon afterwards dis- 
appeared from Vienna. 

I saw Frank in " Die Jungfrau von Orleans," by 
Schiller, and I can safely say that I never saw a finer piece 
of acting in my life. The part suited her down to the 
ground, for she was young and rather pretty, and her 
movements were graceful, and her voice was a pleasant 
one to listen to. It is true that at times she rather ex- 
aggerated her emotion, but not enough to be unpleasant. 
I have seen " Die Jungfrau von Orleans " at the Burg 
Theatre since with Medelsky taking the part of the Maid 

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In Paris and Vienna 1 879-1 904 

of Orleans. Medelsky is a charming young actress, but 
her voice has something in it so disagreeable to the ear, 
especially in long monologues, that it takes away the 
greater part of the charm of her acting. I once heard 
Sarah Bernhardt in "La Pucelle d'Orleans," in which 
nothing could possibly have been more exquisite than her 
very melodious voice, but still it by no means surpassed 
to my mind the rendering of the " Maid of Orleans " by 
Frank at the Burg. It is quite possible, as many of the 
critics said at the time, that the part of La Pucelle 
d'Orleans did not suit Sarah Bernhardt. 

In those days I saw " Egmont," by Goethe, at the old 
Burg Theatre, in which Wessely played the part of 
Clarchen, and she was truly delightful. She was con- 
sidered one of the best actresses Vienna ever had, but, 
as is often the case, she was treated very badly at the 
last, being asked to retire from the Burg Theatre, though 
she was quite young — only twenty-five — and very pretty. 
It was owing to some intrigue she had, which ended in 
her death. In the foyer of the new Burg Theatre there 
is a very good painting of her ; she is put among the 
most celebrated Vienna actresses. There is an excellent 
actor, named Kainz, now at the Burg Theatre, who is 
considered the finest actor in Germany, and who was 

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Society Recollections 

very much liked by the late King Ludwig of Bavaria, 
who gave him large sums of money. I saw him act in 
" Prince Heinrich von Homburg," by H. von Kleist, in 
which he acted the part of the Prince von Homburg, who 
is sentenced to death for having ordered the cavalry to 
make a charge against the Swedes in a battle in defiance 
of an order of the Kurfiirst of Hesse. The Princess 
Natalie of Orange, niece of the Kurfiirst, intercedes for 
him, and when his death-warrant is signed, he is led, as 
he thinks, blindfolded, to be shot ; but instead of that 
the bandage is taken off his eyes, and he is given the 
Princess Natalie in marriage. Kainz acts the part very 
well. It is his favourite role, but the play is not liked 
in Vienna. Medelsky plays the part of the Princess 
Natalie very nicely indeed. 

The first time I saw the actor Kainz off the stage I 
could not believe it was he who had taken the part of 
Prince Heinrich von Homburg, for he appears such an 
insignificant-looking man. I thought he was a groom at 
first. On the stage in the part of the Prince of Homburg 
he wears a fair wig with curly hair, and really looks ex- 
ceedingly good-looking, and his acting of the part is mar- 
vellous, especially if you consider his appearance off 
the stage. He never looks once towards the audience, 

278 



In Paris and Vienna 1 879-1 904 

and appears all the time engrossed in what is taking 
place around him on the stage. He rather exaggerates 
in the scene where he throws himself down at the feet 
of the Princess, and begs her to intercede for him, saying 
that he will renounce the idea of marrying her if only 
his life be spared. But after she has done so, he refuses 
to sign a petition for his own liberation, as he says it is 
unworthy of a Prince to do so ; finally the Kurfiirst spares 
his life on account of his own niece, and because he thinks 
that the Prince has been humiliated enough. In this 
last scene his acting is truly grand. 

Kainz is going next year to give some performances 
in London, when I have no doubt he will act in " Prince 
Heinrich von Homburg," as he always selects that play 
by preference. 

" Die Jiidin von Toledo," by Grillparzer, is a very 
favourite play at the Burg, in which Kainz plays the 
part of King Alfonso the Noble, of Spain, who is married 
to Eleonore of England, the daughter of Henry II, 
The action takes place at Toledo in the year 1195, when 
in the royal gardens King Alfonso makes the acquaintance 
of a Jewish girl, Rachel, and her sister, who are with their 
father, and have been ordered out of the gardens because 
they are Hebrews. The girl throws herself down at the 

279 



Society Recollections 

feet of the King and holds his legs so tight that he cannot 
move, which rather pleases him than otherwise ; the 
Queen is very jealous and annoyed, and retires. The 
King has the girl Rachel looked after, and in one act 
Rachel is seen trying on a long mantle and a crown before 
her sister, when she is surprised by the King, whom her 
childishness pleases. She takes a fancy to a picture of the 
King, and takes possession of it, substituting her own, 
in the form of a miniature, in place of it, which the King 
then wears with a gold chain round his neck. The 
Queen is furious, and deliberates with her advisers what 
is best to be done ; they suggest that Rachel ought to be 
banished, but the Queen is more bloodthirsty, and decides 
for her to be put to death. While the King is in the 
country they take care that he shall have no horses on 
which to get to Toledo, and so they carry out their 
terrible plot. The King arrives when the murder has 
been done, and takes matters very coolly, saying that 
his passion for Rachel was over, and that he only thought 
now of his wife and son ; whereupon the sister of Rachel 
tells the King that one day he will be defeated in battle, 
and that then he will look towards heaven and see the 
image of Rachel whom he sacrificed ; he will beat his 
breast with repentance, and think of the Jewess of 

280 



In Paris and Vienna 1 879-1904 

Toledo with regret. " Konig Ottokars Gliick und Ende," 
by Grillparzer, I have also seen at the Burg ; it is a very 
long and somewhat heavy play, and requires many good 
actors, as there are so many important parts. In " Die 
Jiidin von Toledo " the part of Rachel the Jewess was 
played by Frau Devrient-Reinhold beautifully. It is 
one of her best parts, which is saying a great deal, for 
she is undoubtedly one of the finest actresses living. 

Frau Devrient-Reinhold has had a strange career. In 
her extreme youth she acted at the principal theatre at 
Hamburg ; when quite a girl of seventeen or eighteen 
a millionaire took a great fancy to her, and made her a 
present of an island near Hamburg, on which a magnifi- 
cent castle was built ; and on one occasion this millionaire 
had the water aU round the island illuminated expressly 
for her, at a cost of several thousand pounds ; it had only 
once been done before for the Emperor of Germany. 
This was told me by a gentleman who lived at Hamburg, 
and who knew Fraulein Reinhold in those days as well 
as this millionaire. He said that she was perfectly 
lovely, and that this man must have spent a fortune 
upon her. Fraulein Reinhold married afterwards Herr 
Devrient, who is one of the best actors at the Burg 
Theatre, and a very good-looking man. Devrient acts 

281 



Society Recollections 

chiefly in Grillparzer's and Shakespeare's plays, always 
taking an important part. He belongs to the celebrated 
family of that name, whom Lessing describes in his 
" Hamburgische Dramaturgic." 

Since Kainz has been in Vienna they often give a play 
by Calderon expressly for him, called in Spanish, " Hombre 
pobre todo es trazas," which means " A poor man must 
employ ruse " ; the play is called in German, " Zwei 
Eisen im Feuer " (Two irons in the fire), and the subject 
is as follows : A poor man, Don Diego, makes love to a 
poor girl. Dona Beata, under the name of Don Dionis, 
and at the same time he makes love to a rich girl. Dona 
Clara, under his own name, Don Diego. Both these 
girls have each another suitor. Dona Beata is also made 
love to by Don Felix, and Doiia Clara by Don Leonelo, 
but they both of them much prefer their other adorer, 
who is Don Diego for the one, and Don Dionis for the 
other. These two girls happen to know each other, and 
one day Doiia Beata pays Dofia Clara a visit ; they be- 
come confidential, and say what man they love best ; 
but they have no idea that Don Diego and Don Dionis 
are one and the same man. While the two ladies are 
together Don Diego pays a visit to Doiia Clara, and on 
seeing Dona Beata he pretends not to know her, and 

282 



In Paris and Vienna 1879 -1904 

never to have seen her before ; and says to Dona Beata, 
while he is left alone with her for a few minutes, that he 
does not know who Don Dionis is at all, and that he cannot 
account for his resemblance to him excepting that every- 
body has a kind of double in life. Doiia Beata scarcely 
knows what to think or believe. 

The next day Don Dionis pays Dofia Beata a 
visit, and tells her that he has sat up all night 
composing a song to her, which he brings with 
him. Dona Beata asks him questions about Don 
Diego, and tells him she is sure they are one and the 
same person, which he of course denies. Before Don 
Dionis leaves she tells him that she is determined by 
some means to find out the truth about the matter. 
Doiia Beata writes to Dona Clara to send her a pair of 
gold earrings, and to send them only through Don Diego 
at three o'clock punctually; and at the same time she 
has told Don Dionis that he must be at her house at three 
o'clock too. Don Diego is not so easily caught, however ; 
for he arranges a scheme by which his servant Rodrigo 
brings a man Sancho, who quarrels with Don Dionis 
outside Beata's house ; they fight with swords, and 
Sancho is supposed to be killed, and Don Dionis is 
walked off by a policeman. Dofia Beata disappears from 

283 



Society Recollections 

the balcony of her house, and Sancho gets up and runs 
away. Dona Beata is greatly distressed, and laments 
that through her fault Don Dionis has killed a man and 
been arrested, and perhaps may lose his life too, through 
the law. Dona Beata goes to Doiia Clara to tell her of 
her misfortunes, and in walking out together they hear 
Don Leonelo and Don Felix talking, and they hide them- 
selves in a corner ; suddenly Don Diego appears on the 
scene, then Don Felix asks him if he is not Don Dionis, 
to which he answers that he is Don Dionis as well as Don 
Diego. Don Felix accuses him of deceiving two women in 
different roles. Diego says that with men he always 
speaks the truth, but to deceive women is no deception ; it 
is merely a joke, an art, and he who does not make use of 
it is not wise. If they are not pleased at his behaviour, he 
is ready to cross swords with both of them in turn. 
Leonelo then draws his sword, when Clara comes out of 
her hiding-place, and tells him to leave the man in peace, 
and that she has already decided whom she will marry, 
thanks to her having listened. Leonelo kisses Clara's 
hand, and they both retire. Don Diego says, " Now 
Beata is mine, I am ready ! " Beata comes then from 
her hiding-place, and tells Felix to save himself the 
trouble, for she offers him her hand in marriage. She 



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adds that she was stupid at times, but the stupid wives 
are the best. Beata turns to Don Diego and says, 
" Take back your love, and the chain you gave me with it; 
they are both as real one as the other — the golden chain ! " 
(for the chain was in imitation gold). Don Diego is 
then told by his servant that he had two irons in the fire, 
and burnt his fingers with both of them, but he is not 
disconcerted in the least, and says that everywhere there 
are pretty women, who are charming, who love and trust 
one, so he has no reason whatever to despair. Then 
Don Diego turns to Sancho and gives him the chain 
which Beata has returned to him (it is brass) as a pledge 
for the seven hundred pesetas Sancho has lent him. 
Sancho says the chain is not heavy, and exclaims, " If 
I only had my pesetas back instead ! " The curtain 
falls upon rather an amusing play, in which Kainz plays 
Don Diego very well, but he certainly pleases me more 
in "Prince Heinrich von Homburg." Frau Devrient- 
Reinhold plays the part of Dona Clara admirably, and 
Lotte Witt that of Dona Beata also to the satisfaction of 
everybody. Kainz has lately had a large sum of money 
offered him to give some performances in Paris, but as 
yet he has not accepted the offer. 

I once heard a girl of the ballet at the K.K. Hofoper 

285 



Society Recollections 

say to an actress at the Hofburg Theatre that the 
latter was much better paid than the former, whereupon 
the actress at the Burg Theatre said that it was not 
so, for even actresses hke Medelsky were obhged to 
depend on friends to help them. It was only great 
celebrities who could really make two ends meet with 
their salaries from the theatre. 



286 



CHAPTER XVIII 

VIENNA-THE MINOR THEATRES 

THE Theater an der Wien is for operettas chiefly. 
Years ago I saw Johann Strauss conduct the 
premiere of " Eine Nacht in Venedig," which turned out 
afterwards to be a failure. Millocker produced his 
" Bettelstudent " there too, which for years and years 
was a great success. Lately Eysler has brought out 
" Bruder Straubinger," an operetta which is really very 
pretty, and some airs in it are quite lovely. The principal 
singers there are Fraulein Robinson, Betty Seidel, Alma 
Saccur, Frau Kopacsy Karczac, and Herr Girardi is the 
principal comic singer. They often give English oper- 
ettas, like the " Toreador," or musical comedies, like 
the " Runaway Girl." One year they gave Italian 
operas, and Bonci, the famous Italian tenor, sang in " I 
Puritani " and " L'Elisire d'Amore," and the aristocracy 
went there instead of going to the K.K. Hofoper. Strauss's 
better-known operettas like " Der Zigenner Baron " and 
" Die Fledermaus," are given at the Theater an der Wien 

287 



Society Recollections 

when there is not a novelty, but quite lately the better 
operetta has been performed exclusively at the K.K. 
Hofoper. The Theater an der Wien has been rebuilt 
inside, but it is quite a small theatre compared with the 
K.K. Hofoper and Burg Theatre. 

The Karl Theatre is another theatre for operettas, 
where they give a great many English operettas, such 
as the " Mikado," " San Toy," but they are very poorly 
mounted compared with London. The principal singers 
have better voices perhaps, but the chorus is not nearly 
so good. They sing correctly, but they cannot dance, 
and they are mostly plain girls, and are dressed badly. 
The operetta which has had such a run there lately is 
" Der Rastelbinder," by Lehar, which is excessively 
pretty as far as the music is concerned. I hear it is going 
to be given in London very shortly. The principal 
singers are Annie Dirkens, who is married to the Baron 
Hammerstein, and Mizzi Giinther ; both of them have 
very good voices, and the former sang in London one 
season in English. Treumann is the principal comic actor 
and singer, and Willy Bauer a light tenor. Theresa Bieder- 
mann, at the Karl Theatre, is a very amusing actress 
who sings and dances well, and always meets with much 
applause. The Karl Theatre is across the river, and is 

288 



In Paris and Vienna 1879 -1904 

a smaller theatre than the Theater an der Wien. The 
audience is mostly Jewish, as it is in the Jewish quarter 
near the Synagogue. The Josefstadt Theatre is merely 
for farces and frivolous plays translated from the French, 
such as " M'amour," which is a very laughable play. A 
lady who is married to a man, a collector of old porcelain, 
takes a lover, who becomes more friendly with the hus- 
band than with the wife, so she takes another lover. The 
first lover gets jealous of the second, and finally the lady 
tires of the second one, but makes her husband so jealous 
of him that he turns him out of the house, to the joy of 
the first lover. 

" L' Anglais tel qu'on le parle " is another amusing 
play. An Englishman arrives at an hotel in Paris, in 
search of his daughter, who has run off with a Frenchman. 
They happen to be stopping at the same hotel unknown 
to one another ; the Englishman cannot speak French, 
but there is an interpreter who can only say " yes " and 
" no " in Enghsh, and cannot understand a word of 
English. The interpreter explains to the lady who 
keeps the hotel that the Englishman has been robbed on 
the journey, which is not at all the case. They send for 
an agent de police, who writes down what the interpreter 
tells him, and when the young man comes in he is 
u 280 



Society Recollections 

arrested for theft, to the amazement of the young English 
girl. Of course the matter rights itself in the end, and 
the father gives his consent to his daughter's marriage. 
The principal actresses at the Josefstadt Theatre are 
Frau Pohl Meiser, Adela Moraw, and Fraulein Dumska, 
a Polish actress. 

The Jubilaum Theatre, which was built to celebrate 
the Emperor's jubilee, is a nice little theatre, where fairy 
tales and pieces like " Quo Vadis," by Sienkiewicz, are 
played. There is generally a ballet from the pupils of the 
K.K. Hofoper ballet ; the younger girls under fifteen dance 
there. Last year they gave a play called " Dornroschen," 
in which a princess is put to sleep for one hundred years ; 
of course she wakes up with all her entourage by the aid 
of a prince, who marries her. The ballet in it was very 
pretty, the children from the K.K. Hofoper dancing 
charmingly. The Jubilanns Theatre is regarded as quite 
a Christian theatre, in opposition to the Karl Theatre, 
which, as I have said, is quite Jewish. The actresses 
at the Jubilanns Theatre are Fraulein Simony, and a few 
others not employed at the other theatres ; as the theatre 
has been so short a time in existence there is no regular 
company here. 

The Volks Theatre is also rather a new theatre, where 

290 



In Paris and Vienna 1879 -1904 

they play comedies, vaudevilles, etc. Frau Odilon used 
to act there in " Zaza," among other plays. She is too 
well known in England for me to speak about her. Rai- 
mund's celebrated plays are often given with a very good 
cast. I once saw " Der Liebe und des Meeres Wellen," 
by Grillparzer, in which Fraulein Wachner played the 
chief part. She was quite young ; she could not have 
been more than eighteen, but she acted beautifully. 
She did not have the success she ought to have had, and 
I fancy she must have left Vienna, for her name is never 
now on the programme. Frau Schratt, formerly at the 
Burg Theatre, is playing at the Volks Theatre now in 
" Maria Theresa " ; people go there to see the jewellery 
she wears, which were presents from the Emperor. Frau- 
lein Retty, formerly of the Volks Theatre, has now been 
engaged at the Burg Theatre. 

There is yet another small theatre called the Jantsch 
Theatre, which is not very famous, but is used chiefly for 
summer performances, as it is very near the Prater. 
The chief music-hall is " Ronacher," which is a poor 
imitation of the Alhambra in London. People take their 
supper during the performance downstairs, and in the 
boxes. The performance is very second-rate. The 
Orpheum is another music-hall, still worse than Ronacher. 

291 



Society Recollections 

The Colosseum is also a music-hall ; it was pretty good a 
year or two ago, but has now fallen off. The " Garten- 
bau " is a kind of music-hall on a small scale ; at times it 
is rather well frequented. I cannot say the same of the 
others I have mentioned ; they are filled with the demi- 
monde and very ordinary people, except when there is 
something exceptionally well worth seeing, and then 
everybody goes there more or less. 



292 



I 



CHAPTER XIX 

VIENNA— GENERAL CONCLUSIONS 

THE Bourse in Vienna is kept alive chiefly by the 
Jews, and is dependent in a great measure on that 
in Berlin. I have noticed that most of the small bankers 
encourage the people to buy shares when they are high, 
and then persuade them to sell when they are low, 
which of course is a very ruinous practice, and many 
are let in by this trick. It is very difiicult to make 
anything at the Bourse in Vienna, unless one be in the 
profession. Our stockbrokers are princes compared to 
those one meets in Vienna ; they are too ready to fleece 
a client ; he has to be very wideawake, and woe betide 
him if ever they get hold of a foreigner ! However the 
law is very stringent against them ; but it is usually 
not worth one's while to go to law in the matter. Of 
course there are some honest bankers in Vienna, but they 
are like diamonds in the sand, so scarce are they ! 

The lawyers are apt, most of them, to overcharge 
foreigners, and as to an ordinary lawsuit before a magis- 

293 



Society Recollections 

trate or bezirksrichter, one may look upon the case as lost 
beforehand, as they always decide for their own people. 
It is not the case in lawsuits before the Landesgericht, 
where the trial comes on before a judge. In that case 
there is as much justice as in England, generally speaking. 
If people cannot pay a bill at once, they are allowed by 
the court to pay it by instalments almost always. The 
shopkeepers are very trusting in Vienna, as in England, 
and by no means like those of Paris, who generally de- 
mand their money at once. 

Apartments in Vienna are paid for by the month, and 
always one month in advance, if they be furnished 
apartments ; if not, three months in advance. The 
people who let apartments in Vienna are detestable 
people as a rule, therefore most persons take an un- 
furnished apartment, and furnish it for the time they 
live in Vienna. House-rent is rather dear in Vienna, 
but considerably cheaper than London or Paris. The 
living is cheaper than either in London or Paris, 
except in hotels. I am surprised no English come to 
Vienna to live, for they would find it infinitely more 
pleasant than any towns in Germany. Of course a 
knowledge of the language is essential, as few people 
speak Enghsh there. The shops in Vienna are very good ; 

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In Paris and Vienna 1 879-1 904 

they are quite famous for articles in leather, of which 
there is an excellent shop in the Karnthnerstrasse, Wurzl 
by name. The shops for Bohemian glass articles in the 
Karnthnerstrasse are also quite celebrated. Fans are a 
speciality in Vienna, Krczi is the most famous maker. 
Dolls are wonderfully made in Vienna. I think they 
are prettier than in Paris, but not so well dressed. There 
are several shops of toys in the Karnthnerstrasse and 
Kohlmarkt. Jewellers are also good in their way, 
but do not come up to the jewellers of London or Paris. 
The dressmakers in Vienna are celebrated ; houses like 
Spitzer on the Ring, Marsch, Wipplingerstrasse, and 
Drecol, Kohlmarkt, have quite a world-known reputation, 
and are not nearly as dear as in Paris. Vienna often sets 
the fashion for ladies, which is adopted in Paris and 
London. The Viennese ladies dress very well, but not so 
conspicuously as the French. The hats they wear are 
mostly very simple indeed, although the best hats come 
from Paris and are copied in Vienna. Boots are excellent 
and marvellously cheap. Gloves are good and cheap, 
but French gloves are better. 

There is the monopole in Vienna, consequently to- 
bacco and cigarettes are very bad, but Egyptian cigarettes 
can be bought, but not Russian, which are not allowed ; 

295 



Society Recollections 

Turkish cigarettes are also imported into Austria. The 
coffee is excellent ; the same cannot be said for the 
tea, excepting the Russian tea, and the Viennese don't 
know how to make it well. The wines are very fair 
indeed, but not equal to French wines, which are ex- 
pensive in Vienna. The Pilsener beer is famous, as 
everybody knows, and most people drink it in preference 
to the wine in Austria. Everything one purchases in 
the way of articles of bronze, for which Vienna is quite 
celebrated, and similar things, are exceedingly expensive. 
The bon-bons are renowned in Vienna, and are nearly 
as good as in Paris ; so are all kinds of sweets and tarts in 
pastrycook shops, which are better than either in London 
or Paris. Gentlemen's clothes are all from London and 
Paris, though the tailors are very good. 

Sarg spends as much as eighty thousand pounds a year 
in advertising his Kalodont paste for the teeth, which is 
recommended by all the great dentists in Vienna, and is 
very good, but apparently it is unknown in England. 

The principal newspapers in Vienna are the " Neue 
Freie Presse," the "Wiener Tagblatt " and "Die Zeit," 
and "Das Fremdenblatt." The "Wiener Tagblatt" 
has very curious advertisements in it ; these would 
very much surprise English people, appearing as they do 

296 



In Paris and Vienna 1879 -1904 

in a leading newspaper. One cannot take it up without 
seeing advertisements like the following : — 

''K.K. Hofopern-Theater. — The gentleman in uniform 
who sat in the fauteuils in the row in front of a young 
lady who was blonde and wore a blue silk dress, accom- 
panied by an elderly lady and gentleman, and who tried 
to draw the young lady's attention, would like to make 
her honourable acquaintance. If the same be possible, 
kindly write and make appointment to Rittmeister, 
I Maximilianstrasse, Poste Restante." 

" Cafe Sheidl. — The gentleman who was reading the 
' Neue Wiener Tagblatt,' who sat at the next table to a 
lovely fair lady, who was with her father and mother, 
and noticed him, is begged to communicate with Baron 
F., Poste Restante, i Maximihanstrasse." 

" Karnthnerstrasse. — Young lady in pink dress with 
grey felt hat and feather, who walked near Hotel Erz- 
herzog-Karl with elderly lady and gentleman, and met 
another lady there, is requested by Dragoon lieutenant, 
who looked at her, to write for ' honourable ' appointment, 
if possible, to Lieutenant 14579, i Maximilianstr., Poste 
Rest." 

" Kohlmarkt. — Young lady, blonde, with blue eyes, 
white dress, who was walking there with her sister and 

297 



Society Recollections 

mother between four and five, and afterwards went to 
the Volksgarten, and then took a tramway to the Hof oper, 
is requested to communicate with gentleman, whom she 
knew followed her, wearing an eyeglass. ' Spero,' 
i3579j I Maximilianstrasse, Poste Restante." 

Then there is another style of advertisement in the 
same paper : — 

" Brunette young lady, sixteen years old, highly accom- 
plished, would like to make the acquaintance of elderly 
gentleman in very good position, with honourable in- 
tentions. Write ' Brunette,' 156789, i Maximilianstrasse, 
Poste Restante." 

" Young lady fifteen years old, very pretty indeed, 
wants to make the ' honourable ' acquaintance of officer 
of the cavalry or gentleman of high position. Write to 
' Mizzi,' 13579, II Taborstrasse, Poste Restante." 

Gentlemen advertise likewise in the same way in 
Vienna. The number of ladies who advertise too for 
husbands is astounding. I knew an instance of a lady 
who had eighty thousand pounds and a beautiful villa 
near Vienna who advertised for a husband through this 
paper and married a colonel in the Guards eventually. 
These advertisements are mostly genuine, as the law is 
very severe against any kind of hoax in Austria. 

298 



In Paris and Vienna 1879 -1904 

A young German girl, the daughter of a colonel and 
A.D.C. to a reigning prince, who came from Bonn on the 
Rhine, and who spoke English perfectly like an English 
girl, told me that the officers she knew in Vienna were 
quite different from German officers ; that in Germany a 
young lady could associate with them without their 
taking any kind of liberties, whereas in Vienna they took 
it for granted that every young girl was fast, and at once 
asked her if she would not come to a chambre separee with 
them. She said she had frequently been insulted by 
them in this way, and she concluded that the Austrian 
girls must all be very fast indeed. I have been told the 
same thing by many other people ; in fact, an Austrian 
young lady informed me that Englishmen were not entre- 
prenant at all ; and that she would trust herself anywhere 
alone with them, but not with an Austrian for one instant. 
The people of all classes in Vienna are very free and easy, 
and they seem to think that peche cache est a demi par- 
donne, but anything done openly is very wrong indeed. 
I have known several instances of young girls of the 
nobility taking a dinner or supper with an officer on the 
sly in a chambre separee, whereas they would think twice 
before they would be seen with him in any public place, 
or walking in the streets, for they consider that in this 

299 



Society Recollections 

case they would lose their reputation entirely, and in the 
former one it might pass by unperceived. 

I remember going to see a furnished apartment in one 
of the fashionable streets, whereupon the landlady told 
me that she thought she had already let it, and to a lady 
she would not like to lose if she should take it, for she 
was very quiet. Indeed she was a married lady, and she 
had found out that she had only two lovers ! I could 
not refrain from smiling at the remark. An Austrian 
married lady, a daughter of the Forstrath to the Prince 
Thurn und Taxis, the reigning Prince at Regensburg, 
told me that she considered the men in Vienna very bad, 
and the women very foolish. On the other hand, I have 
heard it also observed that if it were not for the frivolity 
of the ladies the men would be all right, and that it is 
the young girls who are really so depraved in Vienna, 
whereas the married women are pretty straight. There 
is a good deal of truth in both observations. 

I was dining once in company of a very rich man, his 
reaUy lovely wife, and another lady at the Grand Hotel, 
when to my surprise I saw the wife slightly nod her head 
to an officer sitting at another table with some other 
officers. In his turn he made some sign of recognition, 
but did it in such a way that it was not observed by any 

300 



In Paris and Vienna i 879-1904 

one else. On going out of the dining-room I saw the 
officer pass a note under the lady's cloak in the dressing- 
room by the aid of one of the servants. It surprised me 
a great deal, because I had always considered these two 
people to be a loving couple. Similar things occur almost 
every day and everywhere in Vienna ; intrigues of every 
sort and kind. That is why the Germans call the Aus- 
trians so frivolous ; they are even more so than the 
French, the Germans affirm, and not without reason. 

Most people speak the Viennese dialect, or what is 
called Wienerisch, which is difficult to understand for 
a North German ; in fact, I remember once that at 
Franzensbad in Bohemia some girls from the Opera in 
Vienna were dining at Holzer's Hotel, and the waiter 
could not understand them ; so an Austrian count came 
to their assistance and acted as interpreter. The ballet- 
girls speak the Viennese dialect usually, and in fact some 
of the nobility do so too, and pride themselves upon it. 
In the dialect they never say " Ich," but always " I," 
and for " mich " they say " mi," and " net " for " nicht," 
and " a " for " ein," so really it is easier for English 
people to pronounce and to learn than the German of the 
north, and sounds much softer. They shorten the words 
in speaking, which also facihtates the language, and 

301 



Society Recollections 

they do not pronounce every syllable, as in North 
German. 

The Austrians are extremely polite, and invariably 
flatter people, but some of them are not very sincere, 
and usually try to take in foreigners. I am speaking 
principally of tradespeople, bankers, or lawyers. They 
have a word for fleecing people in Wienerisch, wurzen, 
which is not known in North German at all ; they also 
caU a person who is easily fleeced a wurzen. It seems 
that the supreme idea with some of them is to be able to 
take people in by some means or other ; they are after- 
wards quite proud of having done so, and actually boast 
of having overcharged some client. In Vienna they have 
an idea that all the English are enormously rich, and 
that an Englishman can possibly be not well off seems 
to them incredible. The Germans have just the reverse 
opinion ; they usually look upon all English as being 
very poor indeed, and judge from the English who reside 
at Heidelberg, Wiesbaden, and Bonn, I suppose. 

The Jews in Vienna have never pardoned the English 
for the Boer War, and some of them dislike the English 
immensely ; but their dislike is still greater for the Rus- 
sians, whom they actually hate. You never hear Aus- 
trians swear, neither men nor women, as you do in 

302 



I 



In Paris and Vienna 1879 -1904 

England, not even the lowest class. They use more 
indecent language at times. And they never drink ; a 
drunken woman is a thing almost quite unknown in 
Vienna. The policemen do nothing but look after the 
morals of the women and girls apparently, for men can 
do whatever they like — nothing is said to them ; and as 
to a policeman helping any one to cross a road, he would 
sooner see one driven over than do that. The carriages 
drive very fast, and they expect people to get out of the 
way of them, and never get out of the way of people ; 
empty carriages, I find, are worse than the others. 

In taking apartments in Vienna one must be careful 
that there are not insects in the house ; these are very 
common, especially in houses inhabited by the Jews, 
and they are almost an impossibility to get rid of. I 
suppose they can be got rid of, as at one time most houses 
in Vienna were so infected. People talk about them as if 
they were the most harmless things in the world, but 
I don't think they ever get used to them. I was once 
walking in Regent Street with an Austrian lady, who 
noticed that an English lady raised her dress rather high 
on account of the muddy streets. She said to me, that 
in Vienna she would not be able to do that, for a police- 
man would come up to her and ask her to lower her dress 

303 



Society Recollections 

immediately. It is quite wonderful what the policemen 
in Vienna consider a woman may or may not do. If they 
see a girl walking slowly in the street they often ask her 
what she is waiting for ; and the only people they have 
any respect for are the officers in uniform, whom they 
always salute ; for women of all classes they seem to have 
a great contempt. People dishke letting apartments to a 
lady in Vienna ; if she be alone they almost always refuse, 
unless a gentleman takes it for her. Altogether women 
and girls are at a discount in Vienna ; but they always 
say that girls are much better treated in Austria than in 
Germany and in France. For in France, according to the 
law, la recherche de la paternite est def endue, whereas in 
Austria a girl invariably chooses the richest of her lovers 
to pay her expenses, and he is made to do so by the law ; 
he has no defence whatever, and is simply not listened to. 
There is a celebrated place in Vienna for wet nurses, 
where any lady requiring one can go there and choose 
one herself, and the nurse's baby is taken away from her 
and fed at the Government's expense during the time 
she is a nurse. She is paid about fifty florins a month by 
the lady who employs her. They are mostly girls of 
eighteen to three-and-twenty, these nurses, and the 
establishment is kept up by Government. 

304 



In Paris and Vienna 1879-1904 

Of the climate in Vienna in the winter the less said the 
better ; it is fearfully cold, but generally it is a dry cold. 
In the summer it is fearfully hot ; but the autumn is 
delightful, and so is the spring. The season is in the 
winter, and all the fashionable world leaves Vienna in 
June, and returns towards October. There are charming 
surroundings at Vienna for the spring, such as Baden, 
near Vienna, Voslau, Hinter Briihl, and Meidling, and 
the Wiener Wald, which are perfect. I do not think any 
capital in Europe has such charming environs ; and they 
are easy to get at. Many people go to the Semmering, 
which is several thousand feet high, and of which the 
air is very bracing and the scenery delightful. It is 
also a favourite place in winter, and recommended by 
doctors for chest complaints, as the air is excellent for the 
lungs. There are some good hotels at the Semmering, and 
these are always well filled with visitors, especially in 
summer. 

Vienna, 1904 



305 



I 



INDEX 



Adelsberg, Mme., 86 

Andrassy, Count, 230 

Anglesey, Marquis of, 13, 16, 53, 67 

Auersperg, Prince, 222 

Austria, Imperial Family of — 
Emperor (Franz Josef), 229 

et seq. 
Empress of, 98, 103, 22getseq. 
Crown Prince Rudolph, 2325^ seq 
Crown Princess Stephanie, 235 

et seq. 
Archduke Franz Ferdinand, 

146, 158, 161, 237, 238 
Archduke Leopold, 154 
Archduke Louis Victor, 183 
Archduke Otto, 154, 236 

Badeni, Count, 248 
Barbasetti, Signor, 172 
Bath, Marchioness of, 153 
Bavaria, Princess Sophie ol, 4 
Beauclerc, Lord Amelius, 8 
Beaufort-Spontin, Due de, 5, 6,242 
Bennett, Dr., 77 
Berkeley, Lord, 27, 28 
Bernhardt, Sarah, 46 
Bingham, Hon. Albert, 35 
Bingham, Capt. the Hon. Denis,34 
Blount, Edward, 72 
Bois-Guilbert, Marquise Brian de, 
22, 63. 79 



Bonaparte, Princess Jeanne, 8 
" Brahma," 256 
Brown-Sequard, Dr., 73, 74 
Burgh, Capt. Hubert de, 87 

Campo Segrado, Marquise de, 20 

Cardigan, Lady, 87 

Carvalho, Mme., 40 

Cercle des Patineurs, Le, 72 

Cirque d'Ete, 51 

Cirque d'Hiver, 51, 52 

Charcot, Professor, 75 

" Comtesse de Romani," 48 

Conservatoire, 51 

Conyers, Lord, 53 

" CoppeUa," 37 

Coquelin, M., 46 

Czerwinska, Comtesse, 32 

" Dame Blanche," 256 
Darnley, Lord, 7 
Delaunay, M., 43-5 
Desbarolles, M., 84 
" Diane de Lys," 44 
Didon, P^re, 77 
" Der Faule Hans," 265 
" Die Fledermaus," 78 
Dillon, Lord, 8, 9 
d'Orleans, Due, 180 
Doyne, James, 41, 53, 54 



307 



Ind 



ex 



Durand, Emile, 78 

Diirkheim, Count Alfred, no, 112 

Dzialynska, Comtesse, 31 

Edlingen, Baron, 200 
Eulenburg, Prince zu, 249 
" Euryanthe," 256 
Evans, Dr. Thomas, tj 

Faucher, Marquise de, 7 
Faure, M., 36, 38 
" Faust," 36 
Favart, Mme., 44 
Fitzwilliam, Lord, 41 
Frank, Mme. Louise, 276 

Gambanos, Mme. de, 20, 21 
Gambetta, M., 7, 72 
Galerie de Glaces, 95 
Garfield, President, 73 
Garrison, Commodore, 64 
Germany, Crown Prince of, 104 
Giuri, Mme. Maria, 42, 43 
Gonzaga, Princess, 176 
Goodenough, Mrs. Victoria, 10 
Got, M., 45 

Grammont, Duchesse de, 10 
Grant, President, 7 
Grieves, Capt. Mackenzie, 35 
Gudden, Dr., 109, no, 115, 116, 

119, 120 
Gull, Sir William, 64 

" Hamlet," 36 
Havre, Baron van, 30, Ti 
Healey, Mrs., 8, 10 
Herve, M., 42, 43 
Hewett, Miss, 18 



Hesselschwert, Karl, 99, 108 
Hitchins, Mr., 43 
Hofopern -Theater, 252 
Hohenlohe, Prince, 104 
Holnstein, Count, 108-10 

Jantsch Theatre, 291 
Jockey Club, 58 
Judic, Mme., 62 
Jubilaum Theatre, 290 

Kainz, Herr, 277, 278 
Karl Theatre, 288 
Kielmansegg, Count, 247 
Kieszkowska, Mile. Sophie de, 204 
Klobetz, Gabrielle, 272 
Kock, Paul de, 80, 82 
Koerber, Herr von, 248 
Kohler, Mme. Marie, 263, 266 
Kxanz, Dr. Sigmund, 243 
Kscheschinskaia, Mme., 184, 257 

" La Belle Hel&ne," 42 

Labitzky, Herr, 131 

" La Boule," 47 

" L'Africaine," 36, 37 

" L' Anglais tel qu'on leparle," 289 

" La Cigale chez les Fourmis," 44 

" La Cagnotte," 47 

" La Favorita," 36 

" La Figlia del Regimento," 38 

" La Flute Enchantee," 40 

" La Joie fait Peur," 45 

" La Morte Civil," 48 

La Sainte Chapelle, 5 5 

Leclerc, Renee, 83 

" L'Ecole des Femmes," 45 

" Le Demi-monde," 45 



308 



Ind 



ex 



Lehmann, Frau Lilli, 260 
" Le Prophfete," 37 
" Les Voyages de Gulliver," 42 
Lescuyer d' Attain villa, M., 5 
Ligne, Princess de, 6 
Linda, Mme. Bertha, 256, 257 
" L'OEil Creve," 42 
Loftus. Lord George, 33 
Lonyay, Count, 237 
" Louise," 256 
" Lucia di Lammermoor," 38 
Ludwig II of Bavaria, 93 et seq. 
Luitpold, Prince Regent of Ba- 
varia, 108, III 
Lyons, Lord, 14 

Mackay, Mrs., 24, 25, 37 
Martin, M. de Francisco, 19, 20 
Meistner, M. de, 1 5 
Melfort, Comtesse de, 29 
Metternich, Princess, 72, 185, 186, 

192 
Montclerc, Marquis de, 9 
Montenuovo, Prince, 249 
Montrose, Duke of, 21 
Mounet-SuUy, M., 46 
Miiller, Dr., 99 

Nilsson, Mme., 36 

Oppenheim, Mme., 39, 40, 140 
Opera Comique, 38, 40 
Orczy, Baron Felix Bodog, 230, 
231 

Palais Royal, 47 

Parnell, Miss Fanny, 3, 5, 6, 7, 23, 
57.85 



Parnell, Miss Theodosia, 21 

Pasca, Mme., 48, 49 

Passy, Mme. de, 17 

Patti, Mme. Adelina, 36, 38, 39 

" Paul et Virginie," 49 

" Paul Forestier," 44 

Pearl, Mme. Cora, 61 

" Phfedre," 46 

Pietri, M., 21 

Pietri, Mile. Julie. 21 

Potocki, Count, 168 

Plunket, Lady, 224 

Reichemberg, Mile., 45 
Reinhold, Frau Devrient, 281 
Reverseaux, Marquis de, 250 
" Richard III," 274, 275 
Riggs, Mrs. Joe, 12, 14, 38 
" Robert le Diable," 37 
Rosenfeld, Dr. Victor, 243 

Salle Drouot, 70 

Salvini, M., 48 

Sampieri, Marquise de, 17 

SangaUi, Mme., 37 

Schneider, Mile. Hortense, 42, 50 

Simonnet, Dr., 61 

Skittles, Mme., 61 

Slade, General Herbert, 33. 68 

Slade, General WiUiam, 33 

" Sonne und Erde," 264 

Staniforth, Mrs., 38, 59 

Stewart. Col., 6 

Strauss, Edward, 152 

Strauss, Johann, 152, 153 

" Sylvia," 37 



309 



Index 



Tanteignies, Baxoness de, 127 
Ter9m, Mile. Gabrielle, 50 
Terka, Csery, 88 
Theitre Fran^ais, 43, 49 
Theatre de Gymnase, 48 
Theitre Lyrique, 49 
Theitre des Varietes, 42 
" The Red Shoes," 270 
Thomas, Dr., 241 
Thomas, Goring, 78 
Thornhill, Baby, 1 5 
Tisza, Count, 248 

Vecsera, Baroness, 176, 234 et 
seq. 



", Vergissmeinicht," 271 
Vyse, Capt. Howard, 35 

Wagner, Herr, 254 

Warren Bey, 7 

Warren, Miss Minnie, 3, 4, 25, 38 

Waterlot, Mile., 22, 23, 24 

Winkelmann, Herr, 254 

Wolter, Frau, 275, 276 

Worms, M., 49 

Zamoyska, Comtesse, 84, 85 
Ziegler, Herr, 102, 104 
Zobrowski, Miss, 18 
" Zwei Eisen im Feuer," 282 



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